SWISS Airlines crew member dies days after emergency landing due to smoke

A SWISS Airlines crew member, hospitalized since a plane made an emergency landing last Tuesday due to smoke filling the cockpit and cabin, has died, the airline confirmed in a statement on Monday. This marks the third fatal plane incident reported within a week.

“SWISS must announce, with the deepest of sorrow and regret, that a member of the crew of its flight LX 1885 of 23 December has died in the hospital in Graz, Austria,” the statement said. “The flight had been operating from Bucharest to Zurich when it made an emergency diversion to Graz after engine problems occurred and smoke developed in the cockpit and the cabin.”

At least 17 passengers and crew members required medical attention after the plane landed in Graz. Three crew members were hospitalized, including the victim. One crew member has since been released from the hospital, while the status of the third remains unknown.

The aircraft, an Airbus A220-300 with registration HB-JCD, experienced a “technical problem in one of the engines,” SWISS said on Thursday, citing preliminary investigations. The airline added that “the cause has not been conclusively determined.”

This is the third deadly incident involving commercial airplanes in a week, each involving different aircraft manufacturers. Two major incidents occurred just days after the SWISS incident.

Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8243, an Embraer 190AR, was severely damaged on Wednesday by what is believed to be a Russian anti-aircraft missile during the aircraft’s approach to Grozny. The plane attempted to divert but ultimately crashed near Aktau International Airport in Kazakhstan, resulting in the deaths of 38 people, including the pilot and co-pilot.

On Sunday, Jeju Air Flight 2216, a Boeing 737-800, crashed while attempting to land at Muan International Airport in South Korea, killing 179 passengers and crew members, becoming the deadliest aviation accident in South Korea’s history and the deadliest worldwide since 2018.