More than 30 passengers allegedly bled from the ears and nose during a Jet Airways flight Thursday Night, because the crew neglected to flip the switch that regulates cabin pressure, multiple outlets have reported.
According to the BBC, the aircraft which was traveling from Mumbai to Jaipur, India, had to turn back shortly after oxygen masks had deployed inside. The flight landed safely in Mumbai. The country’s aviation ministry is currently conducting an investigation.
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A senior official from the ministry, Lalit Gupta, told local paper The Hindustan Times that the crew “forgot” to flip the switch that maintains cabin pressure during a flight.
Jet Airways said in a statement on Thursday, “The B737 aircraft, with 166 guests and 5 crew landed normally in Mumbai. All guests were deplaned safely and taken to the terminal. First aid was administered to few guests who complained of ear pain, bleeding nose, etc.” The company added it “regretted” the incident.
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Multiple passengers tweeted out videos of the experience, including one man who said he was bleeding from the nose and there was “no staff to help…no announcement on board to wear the oxygen mask. passenger safety completely ignored.”
Another shared a video of oxygen masks being deployed and called it a “panic situation.”
A third passenger spoke to CNN, telling the outlet: “I saw many people having nose bleeds… I took off my oxygen mask for one second and felt so stuffy and hot in the cabin. There was no announcement by the crew and nobody knew what to do.”
Planes regularly fly at altitudes of around 30,000 feet, at which the air pressure is much lower than on the earth’s surface. This means without pressurization, aircraft cabins will have much less oxygen, and the air will be thinner and drier, which can lead to ear pain or bleeding and nose bleeds.
According to the South China Morning Post, Jet Airways has encountered a number of PR fiascos recently. On New Year’s Day, a flight from London to Mumbai was grounded after two pilots got into a brawl in the cockpit.
