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A Lufthansa flight from Austin to Frankfurt in Germany had to be diverted to Dulles International Airport on Wednesday evening after the plane encountered severe turbulence, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
According to a spokesman for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, the Airbus A330 “landed safely” in Dulles and seven people were taken to local hospitals.
An FAA spokesman confirmed this in an email Flight 469 landed in Northern Virginia “without incident” at approximately 9:10 p.m. local time. The crew reported encountering severe turbulence at 37,000 feet over Tennessee, he added.
A passenger on the flight said the plane went into “free fall” as dinner was underway. The passenger, who spoke on condition of anonymity out of concern Lufthansa would not pay compensation, said people and food “blew up, hitting the plane’s ceiling and even damaging it”.
Someone in the seat in front of the passenger was “seriously injured” with blood spattered, the passenger said. The injured man was wheeled out of the plane in a wheelchair, the passenger said.
The passenger was traveling with a companion and both were unharmed, although their clothes were soiled with food and wine. The airline paid for a hotel room and a taxi but didn’t help with other expenses, the passenger said.
Lufthansa did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The FAA said it would investigate the incident.
Katerina Ang in Seoul contributed to this report.