Plane Passengers 'Screaming, Being Sick' on Flight in 75mph Wind Turbulence

Passengers on board a flight to the Mediterranean island of Majorca were left screaming and crying during extreme turbulence this week.

Departing from Alicante in southern Spain, the flight was carrying passengers to the Balearic Island when it was hit by turbulence resulting from stormy conditions in the area.

A sudden and powerful storm hit Majorca on August 27 with winds reaching over 75 miles per hour ripped through the popular vacation destination. At hotels, sun loungers flew through the air and onto beaches, while a P&O Britannia cruise ship carrying passengers crashed into a nearby freight vessel near Palma, Majorca's capital city.

Estela Orts Martínez, a 25-year-old dancer, was flying back to Majorca from Alicante after visiting family. On her Instagram page, she shared the moment that her plane shook violently as people began to panic.

"I felt vulnerable, it was a situation that I couldn't solve, that my life depended on someone else, so I started to tremble and I knew that I was getting a little anxious and I started to cry." Martínez told Newsweek.

"The reaction of the other passengers because each one expresses fear in a different way," she said. "Some screamed, others cried, others vomited, others hugged each other, others laughed and others seemed to even enjoy themselves."

Martínez's terrifying clip on Instagram shows people clinging onto seats, bouncing around and crying as the severe turbulence shook the plane. Screaming, passengers were terrified as the plane struggled with the extreme conditions.

Translated by Newsweek, Martínez said on Instagram: "It was the first time in my life that it has ever crossed my mind to think 'this is it.'"

"The plane started to fall. People and children screaming, being sick. I couldn't help crying. I don't know how long that moment lasted but it felt eternal. The pilot managed to stabilize the plane; it was like a roller coaster. Nobody said anything over the loudspeaker about what was happening, even when it was stabilized."

Later, Martínez took to Instagram to thank the pilot of the plane for handling the situation so calmly and wrote: "Today I was born again. I hope the pilot of the plane reads this. Thank you, thank you for what you did today. The minutes felt endless, but in the end, it was just a scare."

Turbulence is caused by a sudden and sometimes violent shift in airflow. Irregular motions in the atmosphere create air currents that can cause unpleasant jolts during a flight.

Of course, turbulence can be very frightening, but it is unlikely to cause any real danger. Last year, a woman told her TikTok followers that a simple trick with a pot of jelly "cured" her fear of flying when turbulence was explained to her.

The Palma Met Office (Aemet) has placed the island on a bad weather alert, warning about the likelihood of more severe storms and hurricane-force winds affecting Majorca. Turbulent conditions are also expected to continue throughout the week, with cloud and rain also predicated.

In the United States, airport closures are being put in place in Florida as Tropical Storm Idalia is forecast to become a category 3 storm by Wednesday.

The National Hurricane Center issued a storm surge warning on Monday for parts of the Florida Gulf Coast, including Tampa Bay and the Big Bend region. Evacuation orders have been announced for the counties of Hillsborough, Hernando, Manatee, Pinellas, Pasco, Sarasota, and Citrus.

President Joe Biden approved an emergency declaration for Florida, which will grant the state further federal assistance ahead of the hurricane making landfall later in the week.

Newsweek has reached out to the airline for comment.