An aviation expert has weighed in on what may have caused the LATAM Airlines incident, where up to 50 people were injured mid-flight after a sudden drop in altitude during a trip from Sydney to Auckland.
At least 13 people were transported to Middlemore Hospital, and St John said among the 50 injured was one person in serious condition. Some remain in hospital today.
Aviation expert Geoffrey Thomas of Airline Ratings has been covering aviation for 50 years.
He told 1News the strange circumstances of the event point to a computer malfunction in the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner.
"What we know is [during] the incident which caused all the problems, the speed of the aircraft went from 433 knots to 603 knots groundspeed.
Passengers awaiting an onward flight to Santiago have told 1News they are nervous about getting on board a new flight following yesterday’s incident, which injured dozens. (Source: 1News)
"At the same time, there was a 25 foot drop. Now, to the passengers, they would make it seem like thousands of feet, but it was actually 25 feet."
Thomas said the 25 foot drop is not to underscore the seriousness of the incident, as a 25 foot drop would have been "terrifying" for the passengers on board.
"[It is] still very violent."
A 'computer malfunction'?
Earlier on in the flight, Thomas said there was another "much lesser" speed aberration, which suggests something "was wrong" with the aircraft systems.
"I think [investigators] will find there's an anomaly there... that there's been some false readings which have caused the aircraft engines to surge. It's very difficult to nail it down."
Thomas added the incident being caused by wind shear is less likely as those events tend to last longer and have more oscillations.
"This was just a very sharp up and down vertical speed change and then it recovered. So to me it seems to point to a computer malfunction."
One passenger, Brian Jokat, told RNZ he asked the pilot what happened.
"I asked him, I said 'what happened?' and he said my instrument panel went blank just you know for a second."
A 'difficult time' for Boeing
When asked if he expects a grounding will occur for the Boeing 787, Thomas said he doesn't see one coming in this case.
But, he said the recent aviation incidents surrounding Boeing aircraft has created a difficult time for the company.
"There’s 1000 787s flying around the world and it is a very popular and successful model for Boeing.
"Naturally, [after these incidents] the media is interested. So, anything that happens to a Boeing aircraft will get reported, and that's natural. If it was an Airbus aeroplane having a problem then any issue happening with an Airbus would get reported.
"There's a huge operation behind the scenes of check, cross-check and then double check of anything that happens, and that information is relayed to operators all the time.
"But at the moment, naturally with the Alaska Airlines incident and others, there’s a lot of focus on Boeing."
Why pilots may not have spoken
Speaking to Breakfast this morning Lucas Ellwood, a passenger on the flight, said there was no immediate communication or reassurance after the incident from the pilots.
However, Thomas said their immediate priority was "regaining control of the plane", especially if the autopilot stopped, rather than reassuring passengers.
"It is not clear whether the autopilot disengaged. With a 25 foot drop, I would say the autopilot did disengage, they would have had to bring back the autopilot back to cruising altitude and reengage the autopilot. They were very close to the top of descent to go into Auckland, so the option was to continue the flight, then talk to passengers to reassure them everything is under control."
Investigation
Thomas said there will be an investigation into the event, and it is likely "all parties" involved and are who are suppliers to the 787 systems which could have been responsible will analyse it very closely.
"Investigators will be onto it quickly to analyse the data.
"[It will] ensure this particular fault is isolated to this particular aircraft and components and not a sign of a wider problem."
LATAM said was was "working in coordination with the respective authorities to support the investigations into the incident".
"LATAM Airlines Group’s priority is to support the passengers and crew members of the flight, and apologize for any inconvenience and discomfort that this situation may have caused. They also reiterate their commitment to safety as an uncompromising value within its operational standards."
Chilean inquiry confirmed
The New Zealand Transport Accident Investigation Commission (TAIC) has confirmed the incident involving LATAM flight LA800 occurred in international airspace and Chile will take the lead on the investigation.
"Under the International Convention on Aviation, the Chilean accident investigation authority, the Dirección General de Aeronáutica Civil (DGAC), is responsible for investigating the accident and it has confirmed it has opened an investigation," a TAIC statement said.
The Chilean authorities have already requested the assistance of the TAIC, which was in the process of gathering evidence relevant to the inquiry, "including seizing the cockpit voice and flight data recorders".
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