SpiceJet: 48-year-old passenger injured during flight turbulence dies

A 48-year-old passenger who had suffered injuries during severe turbulence during a Mumbai-Durgapur SpiceJet flight in early May died last month, the airline said on Saturday.

Akbar Ansari, who suffered a spinal fracture after his seatbelt broke, had been on ventilator support for more than a month before succumbing to his injuries on September 26, his family said.

This is said to be the first instance in 42 years of a passenger in India dying because of flight turbulence. In 1980, an Indian Airlines flight experienced severe turbulence over Rampurhat in Bengal, killing two of the 132 people.