• Sweden edition
Business & Money

Teary air hostess causes panic on Swedish flight

Published: 9 Jul 12 06:44 CET | Print version
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/41904/20120709/

After smoke started to billow from the cockpit of a Malmö Aviation plane bound for Spain, a crash landing warning from a teary air hostess caused mass hysteria among passengers.

The plane, which flew from Sturup airport outside of Malmö in southern Sweden on Friday evening, was ten minutes from its destination of Mallorca in Spain when smoke emerged from the cockpit.

“An airhostess on the verge of tears came and said that they had a technical problem,” said passenger Mattias Sonngård, to the Sydsvenskan newspaper.

“All we got to know was that the plane had been given permission for an emergency landing and that we should get into the emergency position with our heads between our knees.”

While it turned out that it was a broken television that caused the smoke, 23-year-old Sonngård explained that this information was never given to the passengers and that chaos ensued.

“It was total panic. People sat and screamed out that they didn’t want to die. The man in the seat behind me fainted and got help with the oxygen from another passenger. I asked an air hostess if we would crash on water or land. All I could think was that I didn’t want to drown – I wanted to die right away.”

When the plane eventually landed safely in Mallorca, flight staff still did not explain to the passengers what had happened, but rather, “sat on a bench and cried” according to Sonngård.

Johan Westin, head of Malmö Aviation, has since claimed that such a fault would never have caused a serious problem with the plane and the aircraft would easily have made the flight even if the screen had broken at takeoff.

He told the paper that the pilots were right to focus on landing the plane rather than informing the passengers, adding that he has “full respect to the fact that passengers became scared.”

Officials from Fritidsresor, Sweden’s largest tour operator criticized Malmö Aviation’s lack of information for the passengers affected.

“We understand that some of the passengers have experienced this as extremely unpleasant. Therefore, we want to ring around and check how everyone feels and how they experienced the onboard service,” a spokesman from the company told the paper.

“Sometimes it happens that people don't receive sufficient information about what has happened. If you’re the least bit afraid of flying, it’s obviously an extremely unpleasant and distressing situation.”

TT/The Local/og
twitter.com/thelocalsweden

What do you think? Leave your comment below.

Your comments about this article:

The comments below have not been moderated in advance and are not produced by The Local unless clearly stated. Readers are responsible for the content of their own comments. Comments that breach our terms and conditions will be removed.

09:21 July 9, 2012 by Cephalectomy
Fjortis???
09:45 July 9, 2012 by tommy the cat
> If you're the least bit afraid of flying, it's obviously an extremely unpleasant and distressing situation.

Even if you love flying, seeing smoke from the cabin, crying air hostesses, and being told to assume the emergency position would be an extremely unpleasant experience.
10:03 July 9, 2012 by EP
Was in an emergency landing once in Canada, flight attends professional as they should be, no panic in the cabin since they kep us informed the entire time what was going on. Captain came on that time and in a calm voice stated that we have lost an engine and we will have to make an unscheduled landing. He sounded very re-assuring and despite it being a nervous descent people we very calm, some even joked.
10:44 July 9, 2012 by krattan
So low cost airlines either don't give employees enough training or select them carefully enough ? how surprising. Actually if I were to survive something like this I would probably be pleased. Certainly a memorable trip.
13:06 July 9, 2012 by sometimesinsweden
" Actually if I were to survive something like this I would probably be pleased."

A smoking tv?
14:10 July 9, 2012 by krattan
Meaning the traumatic situation. Whatever the cause was they didn't know at the time, did they.
14:42 July 9, 2012 by Nvd
It seems that it was CRT TV that smoked.

Buy LCDs. They are cheap. :D
15:49 July 9, 2012 by Frenchone
When you're dead being informed or not doesn't make much difference.
16:02 July 9, 2012 by sometimesinsweden
No surprise that a women got hysterical. Probably due on.
17:48 July 9, 2012 by mafketis
I keep saying it and no one pays attention - modern Swedes are cowards.

Why are so many Swedes abject cowards???
20:05 July 9, 2012 by olga118
Most people aren't afraid of flying, they are afraid of crashing. I would think that if you can not handle an emergency situation in a calm manner perhaps flight attendant isn't the job for you....maybe?
20:52 July 9, 2012 by Trenatos
I'm guessing that they didn't know it was just the TV that broke, while they were in the air.

Otherwise they wouldn't have requested an emergency landing, nor would the staff be sitting around crying afterwards.
21:43 July 9, 2012 by GLO
The flt crew should be canned. NO way they should keep jobs, Go work on flower wagon.....
06:58 July 10, 2012 by Uncle
"He told the paper that the pilots were right to focus on landing the plane rather than informing the passengers"

WHAT? There is a panic in the plane, people are fainting and air hostess is praying to God in tears and the captain of the flight "concentrates on landing"? What, he cannot talk? Cannot say "relax everyone it is only a screen, nobody is going to die"...Even surgeons can talk about anything during brain operation.

Banging on about the benefits of the Duty Free and about the expected weather at the destination is OK to announce in 2 languages, but when the cockpit is smoking, then the frontal lobe disconnects...
05:45 July 13, 2012 by Da Goat
I just hope the passengers don't chicken out on the promises they made to God ! He Loves you no matter if you are scared or not !
15:40 July 13, 2012 by james_g
@ mafketis - probably no-one pays attention because they realise you're a bit of a moron
17:23 July 16, 2012 by feathernoodle
This would NEVER happen in the U.S. The flight attendants (as we call them) are stone cold and serious. They have a lot of power (like, to have you arrested upon landing if you're being unruly in-flight), are very well trained for emergencies (serving you drinks & snacks is just a little extra thing they do). Here, they are more like para-police in heels that hand out coffee, tea or a bag of politically correct pretzels. THERE'S NO CRYING IN CRASH LANDINGS!
ADD YOUR COMMENT   (YOU MUST LOG IN OR REGISTER TO MAKE A COMMENT)
Business & Money headlines
Solna voted best place to live in Sweden

Solna voted best place to live in Sweden

Solna, a suburb just north of Stockholm, is the best place to live in Sweden, according to a new ranking published on Friday by Swedish news magazine Fokus. READ () »

Ikea founder rated fifth richest in the world

Ikea founder rated fifth richest in the world

Ingrad Kamprad, the founder of Swedish furniture giant Ikea, finished fifth on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index published on Friday, with an estimated fortune of $55.6 billion. READ () »

LinkedIn profile lands Swede with hefty tax bill

LinkedIn profile lands Swede with hefty tax bill

A Swedish man is facing a five-million kronor ($750,000) add-on to his tax bill after the authorities took a proper look at his account on the professional networking site LinkedIn. READ () »

India in no rush to open first Ikea store

India in no rush to open first Ikea store

The first Ikea store to open in India may not be ready for years, with the India head of the Swedish furniture giant prepared to wait until the the perfect location is found for the first of the 25 planned stores. READ () »

H&M CEO to Bangladesh: raise minimum wages

H&M CEO to Bangladesh: raise minimum wages

H&M CEO Karl-Johan Persson has urged Bangladesh to raise its minimum wage, adding the Swedish fashion giant is "willing to pay more" in the wake of a garment industry disaster which killed more than 1,100 people. READ () »

Pensioners to recruit ageing Swedish rockers

Pensioners to recruit ageing Swedish rockers

The Swedish Pensioners Association wants to cast off its "stuffy" image at the Sweden Rock festival, in a recruitment bid to set up a rock music subgroup of new members. READ () »

Sweden plummets in income equality ranking

Sweden plummets in income equality ranking

The living conditions of most Swedes have improved in recent decades, but income inequality is growing rapidly, according to a new OECD report, which saw Sweden drop 14 spots from its first place ranking in 1995. READ () »

Swedish shop hits back: our Converse are real

Swedish shop hits back: our Converse are real

Swedish retailer Coop has refuted complaints by US sneaker brand Converse that Coop stores are selling unauthorized pirated copies of the iconic footwear. READ () »

Sweden housing crunch
Young Swedes forced to live with mum and dad

Young Swedes forced to live with mum and dad

More than half of Swedes in their twenties are stuck living at home with their parents in major metropolitan areas, with observers blaming politicians for abdicating any responsibility for dealing with lack of housing. READ () »

Converse in bid to ban 'fake' shoes in Sweden

Converse in bid to ban 'fake' shoes in Sweden

Legendary US sneaker brand Converse has asked a Swedish court for permission to search outlets of Swedish retail chain Coop in a bid to clear near-perfect pirated copies of the iconic shoes off the shelves. READ () »

More Business & Money

Find a new job in Sweden now
19/05 Account Manager Sweden
Sollentuna
19/05 Lead Software Engineer, Environment
Linköping
19/05 Management Consultant to Global Business Services Advisory Services with Shared Services and Outsourcing Advisory experience
Stockholm
19/05 Manager for Application Management
Stockholm
19/05 Manger Intern Sales & Customer Service
Thule Group
SKÅ
19/05 Nordic Sales Executive Platform Computing
Kista
19/05 Quality Engineer
Stockholm
19/05 Senior Consultant
Stockholm
19/05 TCMS Software Engineer
Västerås
18/05 C++ Developer
Stockholm

ALL JOBS »


 
Latest Business & Money news from Germany
Therapy in English
Expat counsellor & talk therapist offers counselling for stress, relationship issues, sexuality, culture adjustment & life coaching. Private & confidential. Stockholm or Skype. Contact me today! 08-559 22 636 or
CLICK HERE
Holiday Luxury Villa in Portugal
Casa Birgitta in Algarve, Portugal. Reduced price in best location. Private estate on white sand beach. All amenities included. Book here today! edward_george1@hotmail.com
The Local's new Marketplace
Find products and services that are specifically focused on English speakers living in Sweden!
FULL DETAILS
Counseling in English
Individuals & Couples - Stockholm Beth Rogerson PhD - Clinical, Marriage & Family Therapist
Click or call 08-5580 1266 now
Trade binary options
Create an account with Banc De Binary, the world’s most reputable binary options firm, and start cashing in today! You can start by practicing with our free $50,000 demo account.
www.bbinary.com