Swiss cabin crew member dies after smoke forced emergency landing

Tragic death of Swiss cabin crew member on Airbus A220-300 during emergency landing in Graz, Austria.

A Swiss International Air Lines cabin crew member on an aeroplane forced to make an emergency landing due to smoke inside the aircraft has died, the flag carrier said on Monday (December 30, 2024).

The Airbus A220-300 jet, with 74 passengers and five crew on board, was flying from Bucharest to Zurich on December 23 when it had to land in Graz, Austria after engine problems occurred and smoke filled the cockpit and cabin. The plane landed safely.

"We must report, with the deepest of sorrow and regret, that our young colleague died in the hospital in Graz on Monday," Swiss said in a statement.

Swiss chief executive Jens Fehlinger said the loss had left the airline, a subsidiary of Germany's Lufthansa, in shock and grief.

"We are devastated at our dear colleague's death," he said. "Our thoughts are with his family, whose pain we cannot imagine. I offer them my heartfelt condolences on behalf of all of us at Swiss."

Swiss said in a statement that "out of respect for the loved ones, we will not provide detailed information about our employee or the cause of death."

After the plane made an emergency landing, one cabin crew member was flown by helicopter to a hospital in Graz and taken into intensive care.