On Monday, a JetBlue flight leaving Guayaquil, Ecuador headed for Fort Lauderdale hit severe conditions — so bad that the plane was taken out of service.
Seven passengers and one crew member were taken to the hospital for treatment upon landing after the flight encountered a horrifying level of turbulence in the sky as the plane flew near Jamaica.
“JetBlue will work to support our customers and crewmembers,” a JetBlue spokesperson told Reuters. “The aircraft for this flight has been taken out of service for inspection.”
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating. It is unclear what caused the turbulent conditions.
NTSB has opened an investigation into today’s turbulence incident that occurred on JetBlue #1256, an Airbus A320, during cruise flight near Jamaica while en route from Guayaquil, Ecuador to Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Numerous injuries reported.
— NTSB Newsroom (@NTSB_Newsroom) September 25, 2023
One user on X shared a screenshot of inclement weather patterns over the area at the time when the incident allegedly occurred.
Not the most ideal weather at the time. pic.twitter.com/oJSjG926Nq
— Bill (@sr71fan90) September 25, 2023
According to FlightAware, JetBlue flight 1256 to Fort Lauderdale landed at 5:24 a.m. on Monday morning.
Turbulent conditions have been wreaking havoc on the airline industry and it does not appear to be getting better. A study from researchers at the University of Reading in England found “that turbulence in the North Atlantic jet stream increased in frequency by 17 to 55 percent from 1979 to 2020,” according to Scientific American.
Last month, 11 passengers were injured on a Delta Airlines flight due to “severe turbulence” on the way to Atlanta just 40 miles away from landing.
Related: Dangerous Plane Incidents Are Skyrocketing. I’d Know—I Just Went Through 3 in 1 Day
JetBlue did not immediately respond to Entrepreneur’s request for comment.
