Sudden Drop of Boeing 787 Injures 50 People

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Caption Angle down icon An icon in the shape of an angle pointing down. Getty Images
A Latam Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

50 people were injured when a Boeing 787 suddenly dropped in midair on Monday.
Latam Airlines described it as a “technical event.”
The WSJ reports the pilot’s seat was moved into the controls when a flight attendant hit a switch.

Latam Airlines incident might have been caused by a flight attendant accidentally hitting a switch in the cockpit, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The Boeing 787 Dreamliner was flying from Sydney to Auckland when it suddenly dropped.

50 people were treated by paramedics, of whom 12 were sent to the hospital, the New Zealand Herald reported.

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In a Monday statement, a Latam Airlines spokesperson told Business Insider there was “a technical event during the flight which caused a strong movement.” One passenger told CNN that the Boeing 787 pilot said the plane’s gauges “just kind of went blank on me.”

The Journal’s report suggests that it wasn’t a technical problem, but rather a mishap in the cockpit. The newspaper cited unnamed officials briefed on preliminary evidence from the investigation.

While serving a meal, a flight attendant hit a switch on the pilot’s seat, the officials told the Journal. This then turned on a feature that pushed the pilot and his seat forward toward the controls, which pointed the plane’s nose down, they added.

The switch on the pilot’s seat has a cover and isn’t supposed to be used when somebody is in the seat, the Journal reported.

According to the newspaper, Boeing is expected to issue a memo about the seat switch to all airlines that operate the 787 Dreamliner.

Latam Airlines and Boeing did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider, sent outside US working hours.