M'sia Airlines Boeing flight took sudden 'dive', passengers 'floated' in their seats

MAS said there were "technical issues" with the aircraft.

Low Jia Ying | April 06, 2022, 12:03 PM

Follow us on Telegram for the latest updates: https://t.me/mothershipsg

Editors note: The article has been edited for clarity

A Malaysian Airlines (MAS) flight bound for Tawau, a coastal city in Sabah, was forced to turn back to Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) on Apr. 3 after "technical issues" and bad weather, the airline said.

According to the New Straits Times (NST), several passengers had "floated" in their seats as their plane, a Boeing 737-800, took a "sharp dive".

The Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia (CAAM) has confirmed the flight's turn back to KLIA and said it would be reviewing the airline's Flight Data Monitoring System.

Flight took a "sharp dive" 30 minutes after take-off

A passenger onboard wrote on Facebook that her flight, MH2664, took off from KLIA at 2:30pm, only to take a "sharp dive" 30 minutes after take-off, according to NST.

Based on the passenger's checks on the Flight Radar application, the flight was cruising at 31,000ft, before dropping to 24,000ft "in a matter of seconds".

However, the dip on Flight Radar's online data shows a 1,625 ft dip.

The passenger might have mistaken the yellow line to be the dip in altitude.

She recounted that she had "floated" out of her seat because her seat belt was unfastened as the seat belt signs were turned off at the time.

She also said that some of the passengers were screaming and crying and feared for their lives.

She added that the flight then made a U-turn, circled above Malacca a few times, and returned to KLIA.

MAS confirms flight landed safely in KL

In a statement, MAS confirmed that the flight turned back to KL "due to technical issues with the aircraft, compounded by bad weather en route".

It said that the pilots decided to return to KL "in the interest of passenger safety".

MAS confirmed that the aircraft landed safely at 5:03pm.

"The safety of our crew and passengers remains of utmost importance to Malaysia Airlines," it added.

CAAM investigating

In a statement on Apr. 5, the CAAM confirmed that an "air turnback" had been conducted by flight MH2664.

It said it would be reviewing Malaysia Airlines' internal Flight Data Monitoring System.

"Preliminary data has shown correct responses by the operating crew following the issue onboard," it added.

Follow and listen to our podcast here

Top photo via Pexels and Flight Radar