FIVE PEOPLE ABOARD AMERICAN AIRLINES FLIGHT RUSHED TO HOSPITAL AFTER TRAUMATIC FLIGHT

Five shaken American Airlines passengers and flight attendants were taken to the hospital after being injured by extreme turbulence on the way to North Carolina. 

Panic spread through Flight 1286, traveling from Miami to Raleigh-Durham International Airport on Sunday night, when the 'unexpected' disturbance hit. 

Sudden altitude drops sent laptops, cellphones and other personal items flying through the aircraft - forcefully striking those aboard. 

Passengers alleged they saw a man knocked unconscious, a flight attendant scorched by spilled boiling water from a drink cart and another who sustained a broken arm.

'I would say it was absolutely horrific. People thought that they were going to lose their lives,' one anonymous passenger told WRAL.  

The airline said in a statement to DailyMail.com that the plane landed safely around 10:50pm despite the terrifying event.

Three flight staffers and two customers were taken to the hospital after landing. None of these injuries were life threatening and all victims have since been discharged.  

Four other people were evaluated by EMS workers onsite, but refused care, CBS reported.  

While American Airlines said the situation was handled with grace, passengers have claimed otherwise.   

'It took way too long for the captain to address what happened,' the anonymous passenger told WRAL.  

'There were injured people aboard the aircraft. He should have stopped at the closest airport instead of flying another hour and 10 minutes when two people were in need of immediate medical attention.' 

The airline said the seat belt sign was on, but those on board told WRAL that was not the case.

'They wouldn't have been serving drinks if they knew turbulence was coming,' she explained. 

'They were carrying hot water. I mean, there was ice flying everywhere, soda cans, cups. People that were by the carts, they just had things flying in every direction.'

Another flyer, Cameron Autry, told WRAL he was in the 'absolutely worst place in the entire plane' when the turbulence struck - the bathroom.

Passenger Lee Francis also recalled his experience amid the chaos that unfolded that night. 

'Everybody's hollering, I've got my wife's hand, she's got my kids, you know, like, we're doing the whole thing,' he told CBS.  

He also praised the flight attendants for trying to keep customers calm - despite sustaining injuries of their own. 

'One of the flight attendants, she basically said, "I've been doing this for 10 years, that's never happened,"' he said. 

The Federal Aviation is investigating the terrifying incident.

'We thank our crew members for their professionalism and our customers for their understanding,' American Airlines wrote in a statement.  

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2025-06-24T16:54:49Z