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An American Airlines passenger says he broke his ankle after getting up to let someone use the bathroom.
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He’s suing the airline, saying it failed to warn passengers about turbulence.
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The lawsuit has come as concerns rise over extreme turbulence.
A passenger is suing American Airlines, saying he broke his ankle while getting out of his seat to let someone use the bathroom.
Gael Severoni, a Maryland resident, says he was injured after falling during a bout of turbulence while flying from Washington, DC, to New Orleans in August last year, according to a lawsuit filed in the District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.
The suit has come as concerns rise over extreme turbulence, with an aviation expert previously telling Business Insider that such cases were on the rise because of the climate crisis.
Severoni, who was sitting in an aisle seat, says in the lawsuit that his neighbor in the middle of the row asked him to stand up so he could go to the bathroom.
When Severoni stepped into the aisle to let him pass, the suit says, the aircraft hit a patch of “severe turbulence,” causing him to fall to the floor and fracture a fibula in his left ankle.
Severoni says cabin crew didn’t instruct passengers to remain seated and fasten their seatbelts until after he’d fallen. He’s accusing American Airlines of failing to avoid the patch of turbulence, failing to properly warn passengers, and violating federal aviation regulations.
Severe turbulence has become a growing concern for airlines and travelers following the death of a passenger aboard a Singapore Airlines flight that plunged 178 feet in under five seconds in May.
Airlines have taken steps to ensure passengers are protected from sudden jolts and bumps, including tightening seatbelt rules and using AI to predict turbulence.
But it’s still difficult to predict exactly when turbulence will happen, with one former pilot warning that passengers should keep their seatbelts on at all times as in-air disruption could be unexpected.
American Airlines didn’t respond to a request for comment from Business Insider, made outside normal working hours.
Read the original article on Business Insider
Source Agencies
