SINGAPORE: Thirteen passengers were taken to hospital after a Korean Airlines flight from South Korea to Taiwan on Saturday (Jun 22) was diverted due to a defect in the aircraft, local media reported.
Flight KE189 departed from Incheon International Airport for Taichung International Airport at 4.45pm on Saturday with 125 passengers on board, the Yonhap news agency reported.
The plane detected a problem with its pressurisation system 50 minutes after taking off, said Yonhap. At the time, it was flying over South Korea’s resort island of Jeju.
An air pressurisation system regulates the internal cabin pressure of an aircraft.
According to data from flight tracking service Flightradar24, the plane’s altitude fell by 25,000ft (7.6km) in about eight minutes.
The plane arrived back at Incheon Airport at about 7.40pm.
Fifteen passengers suffered from eardrum pain and hyperventilation during the descent and 13 of them were taken to hospital, Yonhap news agency reported, citing South Korea’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.
No serious injuries have been reported, it added.
