At least 50 people have been injured after LATAM Air flight LA800 travelling from Sydney to Auckland suddenly nosedived, sending unrestrained bodies up in the air, hitting the roofs, AFP reported.
The Chilean based airline was a Boeing 787 Dreamliner that was carrying 263 passengers and nine crew members.
According to passenger, Lucas Ellwood, “The crashing of people into the roof caused the tiling to be dislodged.”
“The guy behind me was in the toilet when it happened. He told me he went through the roof,” he added.
The Chilean authorities have stated that the incident occurred due to a “technical event” and investigations headed by the New Zealand air safety control are under way.
Boeing, in a statement to AFP, said, “We are working to gather more information about the flight and will provide any support needed by our customer.”
The United States plane manufacturer Boeing has suffered a series of safety issues in recent times.
In January a fuselage panel on Alaska Airline jet Boeing 737 MAX 9 blew off mid-air.
Last week, a tire from Boeing 777 jetliner bound for Japan fell off forcing, the pilot to make an emergency landing at the Los Angeles airport.
US regulators have given Boeing a deadline of 90 days to come up with a plan addressing quality control issues.
Since the start of the year, Boeing’s share price has dropped 25%.
