A passenger died, several were left in critical condition, and dozens were hurt after severe turbulence on a flight from London to Singapore

• A 73-year-old flying from London to Singapore has died after severe turbulence on board.

• The incident took place on Singapore Airlines flight SQ321, which left the UK Monday night.

• As many as 71 people were sent to hospital in Bangkok, where the flight was diverted.

A Singapore Airlines passenger has died after a flight encountered severe turbulence, the carrier announced Tuesday.

Flight SQ321 from London Heathrow to Singapore took off on Monday night local time, but the Boeing 777 diverted to Bangkok 11 hours into the journey, per Flightradar24.

The deceased passenger was a 73-year-old British man with a heart condition, the general manager of Airports of Thailand, Kittipong Kittikachorn, said in a press conference.

The man was later named as Geoff Kitchen, a theatre director from Gloucestershire in the southwest of England.

The theatre group he worked with shared a tribute on its website, calling him "a gentleman with the utmost honesty and integrity."

At the press conference, Kittikachorn, the airport manager, said that seven people were in a critical condition at the hospital.

Sky News reported that 71 people were sent to Bangkok's Samitivej Srinakarin Hospital. 26 of them had minor injuries, while six were in a critical incident, it added.

Two Americans are among the injured, per Sky News. The airline said 211 passengers and 18 crew were on board.

It's the second fatal incident in the airline's 77-year history, after a plane attempted to take off on the wrong runway in 2000. Singapore Airlines is often regarded as one of the world's best carriers — one of just 10 to be ranked five stars by Skytrax.

"Suddenly the aircraft starts tilting up and there was shaking, so I started bracing for what was happening, and very suddenly there was a very dramatic drop so everyone seated and not wearing seatbelt was launched immediately into the ceiling," Dzafran Azmir, a 28-year-old student on board the flight told Reuters.

"Some people hit their heads on the baggage cabins overhead and dented it, they hit the places where lights and masks are and broke straight through it," he added.

Photos from the aftermath of the incident show damaged parts of the plane hanging from the ceiling, food strewn about the galley, and a bloodied passenger.

"Singapore Airlines offers its deepest condolences to the family of the deceased," the airline said in the statement. "Our priority is to provide all possible assistance to all passengers and crew on board the aircraft."

Boeing said it is in contact with Singapore Airlines and "stand ready to support them."

"We extend our deepest condolences to the family who lost a loved one, and our thoughts are with the passengers and crew," the planemaker added.

Severe turbulence can often result in injuries but deaths are extremely rare.

Last month, an Air New Zealand passenger said he broke his leg due to turbulence and had to endure the rest of the six-and-a-half hour flight in pain. And in December, 14 people received medical attention after severe turbulence on an Emirates Airbus A380.

Were you on board Flight SQ321? Reach out to this reporter at psyme@businessinsider.com.

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