Twenty people who were on a Hawaiian Airlines flight near Honolulu suffered significant injuries when the jetliner bucked violently in a patch of turbulent air Sunday, officials said.
The aircraft was at capacity, with 278 passengers, eight flight attendants and two pilots on board, when the incident shook it enough to damage interior panels and cause head injuries for multiple people, Hawaiian Airlines officials said.
Flight 35 was at a cruising altitude of 36,000 feet when it hit the patch, Hawaiian Airlines Chief Operating Officer Jon Snook said at a news conference Sunday.
Fasten seat belt lights were on at the time, but at least some of the injured were not restrained properly, airlines officials said.
Such a level of turbulence has not affected a Hawaiian Airlines flight since the century began, Snook said.