An investigation into a terrifying mid-air incident involving South African Airways (SAA) flight has uncovered how a routine journey from Cape Town to Johannesburg spiraled into chaos, and how a crucial decision by the flight crew may have worsened the turbulence that left four cabin crew members injured, one seriously.
The South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) has released its findings into the October 2024 flight aboard an Airbus A330-300, as reported by The South African, which ‘encountered clear-air turbulence’ while cruising at 41 000 feet.
This invisible and unpredictable type of turbulence, which doesn’t appear on radar, caused the aircraft to shake violently and dip without warning.
According to the SACAA report, instead of allowing the autopilot to stabilise the plane, as recommended by Airbus, the first officer ‘switched it off’ in an attempt to manually regain control.
This move went against Airbus guidelines, which clearly advise pilots to leave the autopilot engaged and use speedbrakes to help reduce speed safely during turbulence.
The manual override triggered what investigators described as ‘pitch oscillation‘, a repeated nose-up, nose-down movement, much like a seesaw in the sky.
The aircraft’s speed briefly exceeded its maximum safe limit before dropping close to its minimum threshold, with altitude fluctuations of more than 700 feet.
During the ordeal, the SAA flight experienced moments of zero-gravity, causing some cabin crew to be flung upward and slammed into the ceiling.
‘Some of the cabin crew members hit against the ceiling and other parts of the aircraft, while others were burnt by hot beverages,’ the report noted. Food trolleys toppled, and their contents spilled across the cabin floor. Incredibly, all 211 passengers on board escaped injury.
The co-pilot told investigators she had ‘feared using the speedbrakes‘ as she believed it might worsen the situation. Meanwhile, the captain confirmed he was aware the autopilot had been disengaged but chose not to intervene, believing the first officer had control.
Airbus later simulated the flight conditions in a controlled environment, demonstrating that if the autopilot had remained on, and speedbrakes had been used, the aircraft would have recovered more smoothly and remained within safe flight parameters.
After the turbulence, the pilots descended to 39 000 feet to stabilise the aircraft and avoid further unstable air pockets.
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