London-Singapore Airlines crashed into an air pocket during breakfast, according to Bangkok Suvarnabhumi airport general manager Kittipong Kittikachorn. The pilot requested an emergency landing.

The aircraft reported sudden turbulence above Myanmar’s Irrawaddy Basin eleven hours into the flight. Without further details, the statement said the pilot reported a medical issue and rerouted the jet to Bangkok.

Reuters could not determine whether the medical issue preceded the turbulence.

Massive gashes in the overhead cabin panels, gas masks and ceiling panels, and scattered hand luggage were seen inside the airplane. Multiple heads punctured the panels above the lights, according to a passenger.

“I saw things lying everywhere and many air crew members injured” after the most severely injured passengers and crew were evacuated.

Kittikachorn believes the 73-year-old British man who died suffered a heart attack. Seven people were seriously injured, including brain trauma. He stated everyone seemed calm when they were led off the plane.

Passengers were having breakfast when the turbulence struck: Reuters Image

Singapore Airlines condolences to the family

The Singapore Airlines apologized for the disturbing experience passengers and crew experienced on this journey.

Injury rates varied among the 211 passengers and 18 crew members. The airline reported 12 hospitalized and 18 admitted passengers. At Samitivej Hospital, 71 patients were being treated.

First, publicly available tracking data could not reconstruct the incident. However, FlightRadar 24 said it was studying data from 07:49 GMT that showed the plane leaning upwards and returning to its cruise altitude in less than a minute.

Reuters claimed that a Boeing 777-300ER passenger described feeling like you were rising and then plummeting.

As reported by Reuters, 28-year-old student Dzafran Azmir said, “Suddenly the aircraft starts tilting up and there is shaking, so I braced for what is about to happen, but suddenly there is a dramatic drop, causing everyone sitting without a seatbelt to be launched into the ceiling..”

According to him, some people hit their heads on the baggage cabins overhead and dented them. They also hit the areas where the lighting and masks are and used their heads to break straight through them.

The majority of passengers Kittikachorn spoke with said all the Singapore Air passengers were wearing seatbelts at the time of the accident.

According to a report posted by FlightRadar 24 about the altitude drop, “our initial thinking is that the turbulence event occurred before the standard descent from 37,000 to 31,000 feet.” They’re probably altering the flying levels before landing.”

It has been reported by the Suvarnabhumi airport that the plane requested an emergency landing at 3:35 p.m. Bangkok time (8:35 GMT) at the time of the incident. In the meantime, uninjured passengers were able to board a different flight at 3:51 pm.

An investigation will be conducted in Bangkok by Singapore’s Transport Safety Investigation Bureau (TSIB).

Aftermath of Singapore Airlines turbulence: Reuters Image

Flight Air Turbulence

The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board found that turbulent circumstances cause the most airline crashes in 2021.

Turbulence caused over 33% of airline accidents between 2009 and 2018, with most resulting in serious casualties but little aircraft damage, according to the U.S. government. NTSB representatives will assist Singapore Airlines incident investigation, the statement said.

Singapore Airlines, a premium airline that sets the benchmark for the industry, has had few major issues in recent years.

The final fatal accident occurred on October 31, 2000, when it crashed into construction equipment at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport after taking off from the wrong runway from Singapore to Los Angeles via Taipei. The crash killed 83 of 179 people.

The Aviation Safety Network lists seven Singapore Airlines accidents.

Boeing said it was in touch with Singapore Airlines and ready to help. Additional queries were sent to the airline and area police.

TOKYO Mt Fuji — I’m Sorry, but the screen is now up, so there will be no more lovely images of Mount Fuji from a popular sidewalk area in Fujikawaguchiko, Japan.

Known for having some of the best views of the famed Japanese mountain, the town began building a giant black screen over a length of street to obstruct the view and dissuade tourists from crowding the area.

A popular photo spot was outside a Lawson convenience shop, where a shot taken from a specific perspective made it appear that Mt. Fuji was resting on the store’s roof.

Mt Fuji | AP News Image

No More Cute Snaps Of Mt Fuji. A Screen Is Up In A Japanese Town To Prevent Tourist Crowds

The tourists, usually foreigners, dubbed the location “Mt. Fuji Lawson.”

However, according to officials, the villagers were dissatisfied because visitors would obstruct the tiny sidewalk, take photos on the busy road, or stroll into neighbors’ yards in search of their shot.

The erection of the 2.5 meter (8.2 foot) high black mesh net, which stretches 20 meters (66 feet) along the sidewalk, was completed Tuesday.

Still, there are other locations where travelers might discover a perfect photo opportunity.

The Yamanashi prefecture, which also includes the Yoshida Trail, the most popular of the four ways to top the 3,776-meter (12,300-foot) high mountain, has implemented a booking system ahead of this year’s Fuji climbing season to alleviate overcrowding, littering, and safety issues.

According to the new proposal, only 4,000 climbers will be permitted to enter the trail per day for a hiking charge of 2,000 yen (about $18), with the option of paying an additional 1,000 yen (about $9) for conservation during the climbing season, which begins July 1 and ends September 10.

Mt Fuji | AP News Image

No More Cute Snaps Of Mt Fuji. A Screen Is Up In A Japanese Town To Prevent Tourist Crowds

Only those who have reserved an overnight stay at one of the trail’s huts are permitted to go past the fifth of the ten stations between 4 p.m. and 3 a.m., a provision intended to prevent “bullet climbing,” or speeding to the summit without proper rest, which officials claim endangers life.

Mt. Fuji, designated a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site in 2013, was once a pilgrimage destination.

Today, hikers go to the summit to see the sunrise. However, the massive amount of waste left behind, which includes plastic bottles, food, and even clothing, has become a serious worry.

Mt Fuji | AP News Image

No More Cute Snaps Of Mt Fuji. A Screen Is Up In A Japanese Town To Prevent Tourist Crowds

Other major tourist locations, such as Kyoto and Kamakura, are also experiencing an increase in overtourism.

According to the Japan National Tourism Organization, Japan received more than 25 million visitors this year, and the figure is predicted to exceed roughly 32 million in 2024, breaking the previous record set in 2019.

SOURCE – (AP)

Federal wildlife officials designated a unique lizard in southeastern New Mexico and West Texas as an endangered species on Friday. In one of the most valuable oil and natural gas basins in the world, future energy development, sand mining, and climate change are the main risks to the survival of the lizard.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service declared, “We have determined that the dunes sagebrush lizard is in danger of extinction throughout its entire range.” It was determined that in 47% of its range, the lizard is already “functionally extinct.”

Scientists have found that a large portion of the 2.5-inch (6.5 cm) spiky, light brown lizard’s remaining habitat has been broken up, making it difficult for the species to locate mates outside of those who already reside nearby.

INaturalist Rare Lizard Effects Oil | AP – VOR News Image

New Endangered Listing For Rare Lizard Could Slow Oil And Gas Drilling In New Mexico And West Texas

The service stated in its conclusion, published in the Federal Register, that “even if there were no further expansion of the oil and gas or sand mining industry, the existing footprint of twould operations will continue to negatively affect the dunes sagebrush lizard into the future.”

The ruling ends twenty years of legal and regulatory battles between the US government, environmentalists, and the oil and gas sector. Environmentalists applauded the decision, but business leaders denounced it as a danger to the continued extraction of fossil fuels.

According to Bryan Bird, the Southwest director of Defenders of Wildlife, the decision offers a “lifeline for survival” for a rare species whose “only fault has been occupying a habitat that the fossil fuel industry has been wanting to claw away from it.”

“The dunes sagebrush lizard languished in a Pandora’s box of political and administrative back and forth for far too long, even as its population was rapidly declining and facing extinction,” Bird stated.

Both the New Mexico Oil & Gas Association and the Permian Basin Petroleum Association expressed disappointment, claiming that the decision defies current scientific understanding and disregards decades-long state-sponsored conservation initiatives spanning hundreds of thousands of acres and costing millions of dollars in both states.

NewsWeek Rare Lizard Effects Oil | AP – VOR News Image

New Endangered Listing For Rare Lizard Could Slow Oil And Gas Drilling In New Mexico And West Texas

In a joint statement, PBPA President Ben Shepperd and NMOGA President and CEO Missi Currier stated that “this listing will bring no additional benefit for the species and its habitat, yet could be detrimental to those living and working in the region.” They also believed that the federal government’s overreach could hurt local communities.

According to scientists, the distribution of lizards is the second-smallest of any North American lizard and is limited to the Permian Basin. The reptiles burrow into the sand to shield themselves from harsh temperatures, and they graze on insects and spiders in their habitats among shinnery oaks and dunes.

In 2010, federal officials determined that protecting the species, which environmentalists had first requested in 2002, was justified. Some members of Congress and local communities that depend on the development of oil and gas for jobs and tax income expressed outrage about this.

After several Republican senators wrote to Obama administration officials pleading for a postponement of the final decision, federal authorities opted not to list the dunes sagebrush lizard in 2012.

CNBC Rare Lizard Effects Oil | AP – VOR News Image

New Endangered Listing For Rare Lizard Could Slow Oil And Gas Drilling In New Mexico And West Texas

According to then-U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, the decision was based on voluntary conservation agreements in Texas and New Mexico and the “best available science.”

In its ruling on Friday, the Fish and Wildlife Service stated that although these agreements “have provided, and continue to provide, many conservation benefits” for the lizard, “we conclude that the risk of extinction for the dunes sagebrush lizard is high despite these efforts based on the information we reviewed in our assessment.”

It went on to say that industrial development “will continue to have edge effects on surrounding habitat and weaken the structure of the sand dune formations,” and the network of roads will continue to restrict movement and facilitate the direct mortality of dunes sagebrush lizards from traffic.

SOURCE – (AP)