Singapore Airlines flight hits severe turbulence, one passenger dead

One person on a Singapore Airlines flight died and dozens of others were injured when the plane travelling from London to Singapore "encountered sudden extreme turbulence," the airline said on May 21.

Flight SQ321 from London's Heathrow Airport was diverted to Bangkok and touched down at 3:45 p.m. local time Tuesday at Suvarnabhumi Airport, the carrier said in a statement posted to its Facebook page, according to CBS News.

"We can confirm that there are injuries and one fatality on board the Boeing 777-300ER," an earlier statement said, adding that there were 211 passengers and 18 crew members on the plane.

The passenger who died was a 73-year-old British man, officials said. Seven people, including some with head injuries, were critically injured, and dozens of others were hurt with varying injuries, Suvarnabhumi Airport director Kittipong Kittikachorn said at a news conference.

Bangkok's Samitivej Srinakarin Hospital said it treated 71 people in total, including six with severe injuries, news agencies reported.

Tracking data from the FlightAware website showed the Singapore Airlines plane dropping suddenly from an altitude of about 37,000 feet to 31,000 feet in the space of only about five minutes. The drop came about 10 hours into the flight from London as the Boeing 777 finished crossing the Andaman Sea and approached the Thai coast. Thunderstorms were reported in the area.

Although the causes of this incident are not yet clear, climatologists have warned travellers to brace for more flight delays and cancellations and more frequent and more severe turbulence, especially on routes over the world's fast-warming oceans, as a result of climate change.