A Ryanair flight from Berlin to Milan turned into a nightmare for passengers when severe turbulence struck mid-air, injuring nine people and forcing the aircraft to make an emergency landing

in southern Germany.

The Boeing 737 was flying through thunderstorms over southern Germany when it was violently shaken, reportedly hurling unbuckled passengers and crew into the ceiling of the cabin. One passenger told German outlet BILD, “I've never been scared before—but in that moment, I thought the plane was going to break apart.”

Among the injured were a two-year-old child with bruises, a woman with a head laceration, and another passenger with back injuries. Three people were hospitalized while others were treated on-site by emergency personnel. Pictures shared online show medics attending to injured passengers both on the aircraft and later in the airport terminal.

The turbulence hit so suddenly that several passengers were out of their seats, including a mother and baby reportedly using the toilet at the time. Some travelers claimed they weren’t warned to fasten their seatbelts in time.

The flight was forced to divert and land in Memmingen, Bavaria, where emergency vehicles met the aircraft on the runway. Though the landing was described as safe, passengers were reportedly kept on board for hours, leaving many feeling anxious and upset.

Ryanair later issued a statement apologizing for the incident and confirmed that a replacement flight had been arranged to transport passengers to Milan. However, police noted that due to weather-related flight restrictions, some passengers were instead offered a bus transfer.

The incident occurred as storms battered parts of Germany, causing significant property damage and prompting investigations into whether a tornado had touched down in the area.

This latest event adds to a growing list of recent flights disrupted by extreme turbulence. In March, five passengers were injured on a United Express flight that had to land early in Texas. In November, a Scandinavian Airlines flight from Stockholm to Miami was forced to turn back after people were violently thrown into the ceiling during turbulence over Greenland.

As climate conditions grow increasingly unpredictable, airline passengers and crews are facing more frequent—and more severe—episodes of in-flight turbulence. Photo by Alan Wilson from Stilton, Peterborough, Cambs, UK, Wikimedia commons.