As a result of turbulence on board the Allegiant, 2 passengers and 2 flight attendants were injured.
ST. PETERSBURG, Florida (FloridaToday.news) — Two passengers and two flight attendants were injured when the plane plunged nearly a mile (1.6 km) during severe turbulence Wednesday on a flight from North Carolina to Florida, officials said.
The Allegiant flight was en route from Asheville Regional Airport to St. Pete Clearwater International Airport, where it landed normally and taxied to the boarding gate under its own power, the airline said in a statement. There were 179 passengers and six crew members on board.
According to flight tracking website FlightAware, the Airbus A320 fell about 5,000 feet (1,524 meters) from about 18,000 feet (5,486 meters) to 13,000 feet (3,962 meters) in less than two minutes.
According to Allegiant, airport paramedics met the plane to examine the four injured. They were taken to a nearby hospital, but officials did not immediately provide details of their injuries.
Allegiant said it is working with the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board on the investigation.
Earlier this month, a Hawaiian Airlines flight from Honolulu to Sydney was hit by severe turbulence, injuring seven people on board. And last year, 20 people were hospitalized, 11 of them seriously injured, after turbulence hit a Hawaiian Airlines plane flying from Phoenix to Honolulu.
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