PASSENGERS on a Singapore Airlines flight left injured by severe turbulence that killed a grandfather are suing for personal injury compensation, The Sun can reveal.
Bradley Richards, Benjamin Read and Alison Read are all pursuing the airline for damages after being hurt aboard flight SQ321 in May 2024.
Hundreds of passengers feared for their lives as the plane suddenly plunged into a horror death drop
Bradley Richards is suing the airline for devastating injuries including six spinal fractures Credit: SWNS
Another passenger, Geoff Kitchen, 73, from Thornbury, near Bristol, died from a suspected heart attack while dozens more were left with injuries as the and 6,000ft in five minutes.
Mr Richards, a telecoms engineer from Benfleet, Essex, previously said the experience was like “something out of a movie”.
He had feared that he would be forced to change careers after suffering life-changing injuries.
A claim against Airlines was filed at the High Court by passengers at the end of last month.
Singapore Airlines has yet to respond to the claim, which is for personal injury damages.
The trio of passengers have enlisted Keystone to act on their behalf, paperwork shows.
It is unclear exactly how much each passenger is seeking, but similar claims have paid out tens of thousands of pounds a head.
The 777-300ER jet was carrying 211 passengers and 18 crew when it was whacked by turbulence above Myanmar around 11 hours into the 13-hour flight.
The ceiling of the plane was ripped apart and dangling into the plane Credit: ViralPress
Passengers grip their seats in terror as the plane nosedives and parts of the ceiling come crashing down Credit: East2West
, including at least 20 who needed intensive care or surgery.
The incident also caused granddad Geoff Kitchen, from Thornbury, Gloucestershire, to suffer a heart attack mid-air.
Retired worker Mr Kitchen, described as a “gentle and kind” man, was travelling with his wife Linda on the first leg of a journey including a cruise in Indonesia and a trip to Australia.
His family are not thought to be involved in the legal claim.
Mr Richards, 31, was catapulted into the roof of the plane when it dropped, suffering a rapid change in G-force.
He was left with cuts to his head and had to use a pillow to stem the blood flow from his head.
The telecoms engineer, from Essex, claims to have “immediately felt spinal pain” and had to be lifted into a wheelchair when the plane made an emergency landing in Bangkok.
Mr Richards said: “I think I might have been knocked unconscious when it happened.
Brit grandad Geoff Kitchen, 73, died of heart attack during the terrifying accident Credit: SWNS
Emergency crews scrambled to save the 104 injured passengers as the plane made an emergency landing in Bangkok Credit: Not known, clear with picture desk
“I remember waking up and my head was just pouring with blood, kids were screaming, people running around everywhere, it was so frantic.”
Others on board also recalled a feeling of “terror” as passengers feared the jet could plummet from the sky.
Dzafran Azmir, a 28-year-old student, said: “Suddenly the aircraft started tilting up and there was shaking, so I started bracing for what was happening.
“And very suddenly there was a very dramatic drop so everyone seated and not wearing seatbelts was launched immediately into the ceiling.
“Some people hit their heads on the baggage cabins overhead and dented it, they hit the places where lights and masks are and broke straight through it.”
Mr Read said after: “The force of the impact on the ceiling made me feel like a rag doll.
“I remember being pinned to the ceiling, thinking the aircraft had failed.
“My two-year-old son was gone.
He’d been flung backwards on the aircraft. Thankfully, I found him uninjured.
“My wife had suffered a concussion, which resulted in a terrible seizure, and I had badly damaged my neck with the impact.
“It’s not an experience I ever want to go through again.”
Keystone Law and Singapore Airlines were asked to comment.
One crew member is bleeding profusely from her nose whilst the plane interiors are completely upended Credit: East2West
Survivors of the flight disaster hug relatives in relief upon arrival in Changi Airport in Singapore Credit: AFP
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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