This is yet another reminder to always keep your seatbelt fastened when seated…
In this post:
Delta A350 hits severe turbulence on approach to Atlanta
This incident happened on Tuesday, August 29, 2023, and involves Delta Air Lines flight DL175 from Milan (MXP) to Atlanta (ATL). The flight was operated by a three year old Airbus A350-900 with the registration code N576DZ.
The 9hr47min flight was routine, until the approach. About 40 miles northeast of Atlanta, the jet encountered severe turbulence. Of the 151 passengers and 14 crew members, a total of 11 people were injured, and were taken to a local hospital. Fortunately none of the injuries are life threatening.
According to a Delta spokesperson:
“Delta Care Team members are mobilizing to connect with customers on Delta Flight 175 that experienced severe turbulence before landing safely in Atlanta Tuesday. Our priority is taking care of our customers and crew who sustained injuries. We are grateful for the first responders who met the aircraft to provide medical attention and who are transporting the injured to the hospital.”
Aviation is obviously an incredibly safe form of transportation, so we often forget the simplest way we can protect ourselves when flying, which is to wear our seatbelts. While crews are often aware of turbulence, it can be hard to predict severe turbulence. So always buckle up when seated, and especially buckle up when the seatbelt sign is on.
What’s noteworthy about this incident
A couple of things stand out about this story.
First of all, in a summer of unprecedented transatlantic demand, I’m surprised the flight was less than half full. Delta’s A350-900s have 339 seats (well, at least this version, which is an ex-LATAM plane), and there were just 151 passengers, for a 45% load factor. I get that a lot of kids are back in school, but for a transatlantic flight before Labor Day (the traditional end of the peak summer travel season), that seems mighty quiet!
Second of all, if this turbulence happened about 40 miles from Atlanta, odds are that the crew was already preparing the cabin for landing, and that the seatbelt sign was on. So I can understand how crew members could’ve been injured, though I wonder how many of those 11 injuries were passengers, given that they should have been in their seats with their seatbelts fastened.
Bottom line
A Delta Airbus A350 encountered severe turbulence while on approach to Atlanta Airport yesterday, leading to 11 injuries among passengers and crew. I guess it’s good that the flight wasn’t that full and that this happened during descent (when the seatbelt sign was presumably on), or else a lot more people could have been injured. Hopefully those who were injured make a quick recovery.
What do you make of this severe turbulence incident?
I flew out of Atlanta that afternoon and we had some of the worst turbulence I've ever experienced. While I've had worse moments of sudden drops, this was extremely rough for nearly an hour. It lasted almost all the way to DC. So, it was significant, long lasting AND well known to all the pilots flying in and out of ATL that day. Maybe they were the first to hit it (as I didn't look...
I flew out of Atlanta that afternoon and we had some of the worst turbulence I've ever experienced. While I've had worse moments of sudden drops, this was extremely rough for nearly an hour. It lasted almost all the way to DC. So, it was significant, long lasting AND well known to all the pilots flying in and out of ATL that day. Maybe they were the first to hit it (as I didn't look up the timing of the flight...) or didn't take the warnings seriously. Otherwise they should have have the plane battened down and the FAs seated an hour out that day.
Not due to global warming. That's a red herring.
There was bad weather in the vicinity, and my guess (emphasis -- guess) is that this was caused by pilots flying into bad weather and they should have known better.
Wait for the NTSB prelim report to see if my guess is correct.
It seems that the stories of severe turbulence and related injuries have been increasing the last few years. Is this a reporting issue, as in, more of these incidences are being reported, or is there actually more turbulence? Climate change does seem to lead to more severe weather events so perhaps the increased incidences of severe turbulence are just one symptom of climate change we are witnessing, but wondering if we have any hard data to tell what's going on?
I know there are a lot of "newbies" to the realm that were not quite "ready", but is it really that hard to differentiate between 40 miles and 40 minutes? I guess the "newbies" will learn over time. :-)
is that the best you can do? or is that too high of a standard for us to hold you to?
Ben, I think you should do a story on why the airlines continue to charge high fares when the planes are empty. Yesterday, I was on an AA flight to CLT from AUS yesterday and there were only about 30 people on the flight yet my fare was over $600 rt. My friend recently traveled on a non-stop flight from IAD to SFO and there were only 8 people on the flight yet he paid over $800 for the ticket.
You assume lowered prices will increase purchasing. Likely the incremental increase in purchases would not offset the reduced revenue and increased cost per passenger from more tickets lower pricing. Of rather, they've set prices favorably to them because of course they do.
Delta is using a global turbulence warning system. I’m surprised and wonder if they didn’t get a heads up from ATC or either a Pirep from other aircraft transitioning through that same altitude and area. Also on the arrival into Atlanta being 40 miles out means they were somewhere around 12 to 15,000 feet which is an area where building pop ups occur. So circumnavigating these would be essential to stay reasonably clear of unwanted...
Delta is using a global turbulence warning system. I’m surprised and wonder if they didn’t get a heads up from ATC or either a Pirep from other aircraft transitioning through that same altitude and area. Also on the arrival into Atlanta being 40 miles out means they were somewhere around 12 to 15,000 feet which is an area where building pop ups occur. So circumnavigating these would be essential to stay reasonably clear of unwanted bumps. Having that said it could happen to anyone.
"Priority Pass Lounge Encounters Severe Turbulence, Injuring 11 People"
August is the peak travel month for European travel TO the US but this is the end of the month. This was also a Tuesday.
Airlines do not necessarily drop fares during the peak periods just to fill seats and that is esp. true for Delta.
40 minutes before landing is far enough from landing that they were at top of descent but still far enough that people could well have been moving around....
August is the peak travel month for European travel TO the US but this is the end of the month. This was also a Tuesday.
Airlines do not necessarily drop fares during the peak periods just to fill seats and that is esp. true for Delta.
40 minutes before landing is far enough from landing that they were at top of descent but still far enough that people could well have been moving around. Flightaware shows that the flight was still at 40,000 feet 40 minutes before the end of the flight and over N. Carolina.
The article says 40 miles not 40 minutes. 40 miles would only be a handful of minutes out depending on exact track and such. Looking at the flightaware track log, I don't see any obvious/significant deviations in speed/altitude, so I can't tell exactly where/when this happened.
thanks for that clarification. 40 miles out would have put it close to 10K feet which means the seat belt sign was definitely on and the crew was finalizing galley preparations.
There has been a fair amount of weather in the SE. There is a front that is keeping the hurricane from moving further north into the Atlanta area but weather in the SE will not be good for at least 24 more hours.
40 miles, not 40 minutes. They were on final approach. No excuse for not being buckled unless crew.
Whenever I read these stories (and I was literally on a DL flight into ATL earlier yesterday before the storms so this one hit close to home) I always wonder about the people in the lav at the time of the turbulence and whether they are injured and also a bit of a "mess."
flights are pretty empty across the Atlantic right now. I'm not surprised that flight was empty either. Also, that's a lot of airplane for that route. While it might work in peak summer, we're far from peak summer.
@Jason: agree with you so how do they justify charging $15k for DeltaOne, $7k for Premium Select and $4k for coach on a flight from the US to London? I am booked on a flight next week and 60% of the plane is empty and DeltaOne probably 80% empty. Crazy!!!
lol i dont know, but I share your pain!!
"60% of the plane" How do you know this? Seat maps are often misleading.
Misleading? Really? When I go book my ticket it gives me the option to select me seat. The ones available for me to chose have a different color or sign than the ones occupied. When the ones available for me to chose are over 60% of the entire plane, that means the plane is 60% + empty otherwise they wouldn’t allow my to choose those seats.
@Santastico not true. A surprising number of people simply don't select seats, and on some carriers BE don't get advance seat assignments. I doubt your flight is 100% full, but almost always, the number of unoccupied seats far exceeds the number of actually-available seats on a flight.
>Seat maps are often misleading.<
I can confirm that from my experiences. I have had more than one flight in the past few years where the online seat map "indicated" I was boarding an almost empty plane, only to board and find out that most seats are filled.
Quick update on the above. Checking in today for my flight in coach. Looked at Delta One and still at $15k. When I checked in, was given the option to upgrade from coach to Delta One for $599. A total non brainer. As I said, lots of empty seats for me to chose on Delta One.
Fly American, I much prefer American Airlines over Delta.
Interesting you mentioned the flight was half full. Looking for a flight to London next week and 60% of the plane is empty. Still, Delta one (which is 70% empty) is $15k and coach is $4k. Maybe they will figure out that charging those prices won’t help to fill the plane.
@Ben Schlappig This is an ex-LATAM aircraft, as are all A350s used on transatlantic routes (with the exception of Amsterdam I believe). These have 339 seats (30 in business and 309 in economy) so the load factor was even lighter.
@ Bruce -- Good catch, thanks! Updated post to reflect that.
Even with seat belts on one can get injured from falling objects, especially luggage falling from overhead bins. Or it could be a rolling trolley... many other factors can play a role.
Which is one of the reasons why I prefer a window seat. Yes, you can still get objects (or worse, people) flying around the cabin, but the risk of being hit by something is much lower than in the aisle.
True
40 minutes to land is when you have lots of people going to the lavatory. Usually there is a line there. People that just woke up, others brushing their teeth, last minute bathroom break before walking out.
Well, how many persons really do respect the seatbelt sign when it's turning on ?
And even during turbulences, you always have someone going to the lavatories.
No surprise there are 11 injuries...