Lufthansa flight diverts to Virginia after ‘significant turbulence’ injures 7

A Lufthansa plane traveling from Texas to Germany stopped Wednesday at Virginia’s Washington Dulles International Airport after an intense bout of turbulence injured several people on board, according to multiple reports.

>> Read more trending news

Lufthansa Flight 469 experienced “significant turbulence” while flying over Tennessee at an attitude of 37,000 feet, prompting the plane to divert to Virginia, The Associated Press reported. Seven people were taken to hospitals after the Airbus A330 landed safely around 9:10 p.m., according to The Washington Post.

The plane had taken off from Austin en route to Frankfurt, the AP reported. In a statement obtained by the Post, officials with Lufthansa confirmed that the plane “encountered brief but severe turbulence about 90 minutes after takeoff” and landed unscheduled in Virginia “as a precautionary measure.”

Michael Cabbage, a spokesperson for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, told the AP that seven people were taken to hospitals with injuries that were believed to be minor after the flight landed.

Passengers described a chaotic scene on board the plane.

Susan Zimmerman, an Austin native who is five months pregnant, told CNN that she had just finished eating when turbulence shook the plane.

“It was like unexpectedly free-falling for five seconds off the top of a roller coaster,” she said, adding that she could hear people screaming and glass breaking. “Plates and glassware were up at the ceiling, and my purse from the floor flew behind me to the right.”

She told CNN that the plane twice felt like it was abruptly dropping, causing her to wonder if she was going to get to meet her unborn daughter.

“I’m glad for the most part we are all OK,” she said, adding that she was not injured. “This was pretty shocking.”

Jazz Kantipudi told WRC-TV that he saw a flight attendant hit the ceiling of the plane after it abrupted dropped.

“He was literally standing up serving drinks, so he had no way to brace himself,” he said. “At one of the drops, he literally, completely, hit the ceiling and dropped down and was completely horizontal.”

He told WRC that looking over to see the flight attendant at the ceiling was “honestly kind of freaky… like something out of a movie.”

The Federal Aviation Administration will investigate the incident, CNN reported.