Singapore Airlines turbulence: doctor couple on SQ321 describes ‘mass casualty scenario’, aiding others despite injuries

When junior doctor Amos Chan woke up while on his flight from London to Singapore, he was lying in the aisle two rows behind his seat. That was when he realised he must have passed out.

The couple, both 28 years old, told This Week In Asia on Friday they were waiting for their breakfast on the flight to be served when the horror struck, throwing passengers, including Chan, out of their seats.

Tan, who will start her residency in paediatrics in July, said: “It was a mass casualty scenario that we were taught in school, but have never actually seen for ourselves because we rarely see such mass trauma casualties in Singapore.”

One passenger died of a suspected heart attack, while at least 40 were injured. The plane made an emergency landing in Bangkok.

Moments before the turbulence struck, Tan recalled the fasten seat belt sign had been switched on and she watched her husband buckling himself in. She already had her seat belt on.

“The next thing I knew we dropped, and he was gone from his seat,” Tan said.

“When I came to, I wasn’t in any pain, so I don’t think I passed out because I hit anything but just from the g-force,” said Chan.

He was then able to walk back to his wife, who was calling out for him.

“After I found him, we were more focused on how we could help. It was like a mass casualty scene. There were oxygen masks hanging, people had blood on their heads, there were a lot of people lying in the aisle moaning in pain and saying they couldn’t feel their legs,” recalled Tan.

“It was quite hectic and all of us had to assess who to attend to first,” she added.

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One dead and dozens injured after Singapore Airlines flight hit by severe turbulence

The cabin crew had called for medically trained personnel on board the plane to