2LT International News

FRANKFURT, Germany – Dozens of passengers suffered injuries and were taken to the hospital after a Ryanair flight from Dublin to Croatia was forced to make an emergency landing.

According to reports, the Ryanair flight FR7312, which left Dublin just after 8 pm on Friday night, faced problems when the cabin became depressurized midair.

Officials said that oxygen masks were deployed on the aircraft when the cabin became depressurized and the pilots were forced to make a sudden descent.

Further, they noted that over 30 people were rushed to the hospital immediately after the plane made the emergency descent at the German airport.

According to a brief statement released by the local police, passengers complained of “headache and earache and suffered from nausea.”

A report in Der Tagesspiegel said that 33 people required hospital treatment and that some of the passengers received medical attention following the diversion.

One of the passengers took to Facebook and wrote that a fellow passenger mentioned people suffering from “sore ears” upon landing at Frankfurt Hahn Airport.

In the Facebook post, the passenger described how the air went cold before the oxygen masks dropped from above, adding that the plane had to “dive 3,000 metres in less than one minute.”

The passenger also praised the pilots for doing an “excellent job,” in his post.

Meanwhile, another passenger, Ruth Cosgrove, tweeted, “Been on a lot of flights in my time but never experienced emergency landing with oxygen masks and the works on flight to our holiday destination in Croatia.”

Downplaying the incident, Ryanair said some of the passengers had been hospitalized as a “precaution.”

In its official statement however, the company acknowledged that there was a shortage of accommodation for passengers who had to wait until Saturday morning for another flight.

A Ryanair spokesperson said, “This flight from Dublin to Zadar diverted to Frankfurt Hahn due to an in-flight depressurisation. In line with standard procedure, the crew deployed oxygen masks and initiated a controlled descent. The aircraft landed normally and customers disembarked, where a small number received medical attention as a precaution.”

The spokesperson “sincerely apologised for any inconvenience,” and added, “Customers were provided with refreshment vouchers and hotel accommodation was authorised, however there was a shortage of available accommodation.”