Frankfurt/Lisbon - Fourteen passengers were injured when a Lufthansa flight from Germany to Portugal hit unexpected turbulence over the Alps and had to land in Switzerland, a company spokeswoman said Sunday. Among the passengers on the Munich to Lisbon flight were the President of the Portuguese Parliament, Jaime Gama, and the Portugese singer, Dulce Pontes.
Several passengers were thrown into the air, hitting the ceiling of the Airbus A321, forcing the pilots to request an unscheduled landing in Geneva late Saturday night. A food trolley was also thrown into the air, witnesses stated.
The plane was carrying 147 passengers and six crew.
"There was no warning. Among the injured were crew members, as well as those passengers who had undone their seat belts," Gama told the Lisbon newspaper Publico.
"I was not afraid, but it was a strange feeling to watch the drinks trolley fly through the air," he added.
Another passenger, from Estonia, told the Gazette newspaper "My wife flew from her seat and hit the ceiling of the plane."
A "terrifying silence" then descended on the plane before his wife started to cry.
"She could not move her neck and had a severe headache."
Four of the injured, including two crew members, were treated for their injuries at a hospital in Geneva. The other 10 were given first aid at the airport.
The airline sent a replacement craft from Frankfurt to continue the flight to Portugal and the first plane was to be inspected for damage.