Singapore Airlines (SIA) released information at 10:35 pm on May 21 that Flight SQ321 had 211 passengers, including 41 Singaporeans. The plane encountered sudden extreme turbulence over the Irrawaddy Basin at 37,000 feet about 10 hours after departure and diverted to Bangkok. The flight landed in Bangkok at 3:45 pm Singapore time on May 21.
The Transport Safety Investigation Bureau (TSIB) under the Ministry of Transport is investigating the incident, in contact with Thai counterparts, and will send investigators to Bangkok. A 73-year-old British man died, likely from a heart attack, and seven are in critical condition. Over 50 people, including crew members, were injured. Some with minor injuries have left the hospital and are preparing to return to Singapore.
The nationalities of the passengers onboard SQ321 are as follows:
- 56 from Australia
- 2 from Canada
- 1 from Germany
- 3 from India
- 2 from Indonesia
- 1 from Iceland
- 4 from Ireland
- 1 from Israel
- 16 from Malaysia
- 2 from Myanmar
- 23 from New Zealand
- 5 from the Philippines
- 41 from Singapore
- 1 from South Korea
- 2 from Spain
- 47 from the United Kingdom
- 4 from the United States of America.