A British Airways flight attendant is suing the airline for £72,500 after she was violently thrown into the air by severe turbulence on a flight to Mumbai, India. Laura Lanigan, a 56-year-old veteran crew member, suffered a fractured knee and dislocated shoulder when the Boeing 777 she was working on experienced a “violent drop” in June 2019.
Lanigan claims the pilot flew too close to a storm cloud, putting the plane in the “danger zone” and causing the sudden and extreme turbulence. She was working in the aircraft’s galley when the plane suddenly rose and dropped, hurling her into the air. Lanigan then crashed back down to the floor, with an unsecured drinks canister falling on top of her.
The flight was nearing its descent into Mumbai when the incident occurred. Lanigan, who has worked for British Airways for nearly 30 years, says the pilot should have spotted the nearby cumulonimbus cloud and taken steps to stay at least 20 miles away, in line with safety protocols.
However, BA’s lawyers argue that there was no visual evidence of a storm cloud and nothing on the weather radar to suggest one. They claim the pilot made proper observations and that the turbulence was a “single bump” that did not require the crew to be seated and strapped in.
Lanigan told the court the flight had been “too bumpy” to serve hot drinks to passengers, and the sudden movement that caused her injury was “unexpected.” She said she continued working on her feet, using her judgment as a crew member, even as the turbulence continued during the landing approach.
The trial at Central London County Court is ongoing, with Lanigan’s barrister arguing the pilot’s failure to avoid the storm cloud was the root cause of the accident. BA is fighting the claim, insisting the pilot’s actions were appropriate given the weather conditions.
