Explanation: Death screams on Wizz Air flight – but what really happened during the storm in Rome?
In recent days, reports have flooded in about a Wizz Air flight that departed from Alicante, Spain, bound for Rome, but ultimately landed in Bologna. As the plane encountered severe turbulence over Rome, panic erupted among passengers. In the darkened cabin, many screamed and sent goodbye messages to loved ones. Videos of the terrified passengers were shared widely, from British tabloids to Hungarian media outlets.
According to a Wizz Air statement, passenger safety was the top priority. After several failed attempts to land in Rome, the pilots decided to divert to Bologna, where the plane landed safely. The airline offered special thanks to the crew for their handling of the situation.
What caused the dramatic turbulence?
Following the release of dramatic videos and eyewitness accounts, many immediately sought someone to blame: Wizz Air, the pilots, or air traffic controllers. But the situation is more complex and actually more common in aviation than most people realise. The Facebook page “Tudásmorzsák a repülésről” (Aviation knowledge bites) provided an expert explanation, which we summarise below.
As the plane began its final approach into Rome, the crew was forced to abort landing: a common maneuver if the approach is not stable. They climbed back up to 15,000 feet (about 5 km), where they encountered extremely strong and rapidly shifting winds: gusts fluctuated between 30 and 110 knots (50–200 km/h) within seconds. Pilots categorise this level of turbulence as “severe”.
Why wasn’t it forecasted? Aircraft weather radar primarily detects precipitation and infers turbulence or wind shear from it. If the wind shifts occur in dry air, the radar won’t detect them. That’s why another plane may have passed through the same area minutes earlier without issues.
Why didn’t controllers warn them? Air traffic controllers see the same radar images as the pilots, but with less frequent updates. They can’t detect sudden changes in wind within a specific airspace in advance, only once a pilot reports it after flying through.
Who’s to blame?
In this case, no one. The pilots followed standard procedure by going around and then diverting safely to Bologna. Although passengers were clearly shaken, both the aircraft and crew operated correctly.
It’s crucial to remember that turbulence is often unpredictable. It’s not the pilots’ fault, nor due to airline cost-cutting or controller error: it’s simply nature at work.
The good news is that the Airbus A321 and its crew are trained precisely for these scenarios. Although frightening, safety was never compromised.
Read more Wizz Air-related news on Daily News Hungary!
Related articles:
- Wizz Air announced 15 routes, largest expansion yet for the 2025 winter schedule
- Good news: Wizz Air resumes flights to eastern Mediterranean capital city
Featured image: depositphotos.com
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For first-time flyers, it can be frightening. In this case because they were on final approach, the seat belt sign was on, and folks were buckled in. The only injuries that typically occur is when this kind of turbulence occurs mid-flight, when the seat belt sign is off (i.e. the pilots didn’t see the turubulence before it hit), and the turbulence causes a sudden drop in alltitude. Folks end up hitting their heads on the ceiling. That is why the recommend that you ALWAYS keep your seatbelt fastene, even loosely, throughout the flight!!