The terror of flight SAA 286

Sebastian Coana was asleep when flight SAA 286 hit turbulence en route to Hong Kong.

His head struck the roof of the plane, injuring his neck.

"It was like a huge bump, like you hear in a motor car, just bigger. It was very frightening," he said.

Coana was one of 19 passengers, including an infant, injured on the SAA flight yesterday.

Gustav Brandt said his friend, Ewald Sadie, described on Facebook how "Crazy turbulence sent people flying everywhere... passengers with bumps and scratches and a few serious spinal injuries".

Two passengers, including Coana, were in hospital last night.

Coana said the incident happened five hours from Hong Kong. Ambulances and medical staff were there when the plane landed.

Speaking from Princess Margaret Hospital in Hong Kong, Coana said he was feeling a lot better and was waiting for X-rays of his neck.

SAA spokesman Tladi Tladi said 165 passengers were on board. Interior panels on the aircraft had to be repaired, he added.

A pilot with 30 years' experience said such severe turbulence was rare. "This is something you can't pick up on radar; it is bad stuff," the pilot said on condition of anony-mity. Weather radar, he explained, picked up moisture, whereas turbulence was caused by wind.

He said it was likely that SAA would set up an inquiry into the incident.