Malaysia Airlines plane drops 7,000 feet in seconds midflight

Dhaka: A Malaysia Airlines Boeing 737-800 reportedly dropped 7,000 feet suddenly giving a real scare to the passengers onboard. The plane, en route from Kuala Lumpur to Tawau on April 3, was turned around and returned to KL, with the airline later filing a Mandatory Occurrence Report with Malaysian aviation safety authorities.

According to reports, Malaysia Airlines flight MH2664 was 30 minutes into the flight when the incident occurred. Reports added, a passenger onboard said the plane dived 7,000 feet in a matter of seconds, causing several passengers to "float" off the seats.

MH2264 is the 14:30 departure from Kuala Lumpur (KUL) to Tawau (TWU) in Sabah. On April 3, the operating aircraft was 9M-MLS, an eight-year-old Boeing 737-800.

Reports showed the plane cruising over the South China Sea at about 30,000 feet when a sudden descent occurred. They further showed a descent of about 17,000 feet, taking around 10 minutes. A second, smaller drop followed the first short, sharp drop.

It also showed the plane between Tioman Island and Pulau Jemaja when it turned around. The jet circled several times south of the capital before landing safely.

Malaysia Airlines said the aircraft experienced technical issues during bad weather. The airline added the pilots decided to turn back to Kuala Lumpur as a precautionary measure.

The pilots won widespread praise online for their handling of a tricky incident and their decision to turn around. While the investigation is underway, the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia said they will be examining the plane's internal Flight Data Monitoring System, but indicate the pilots appear to have responded correctly.

One likely reason for the sudden drop is an air pocket – a region of low pressure causing an aircraft to lose height suddenly. Air pockets are just an extreme form of turbulence where a downdraft causes the aircraft to drop suddenly. Modern planes are built to withstand extreme turbulence, but an unexpected drop is not much fun for people onboard, especially if not buckled in.