An Aer Lingus cabin crew member has told the High Court today that a hard landing at Dublin Airport in November 2009 was the "scariest flight" she had ever been on and was one she "would never forget".
Aine Maher was giving evidence on the second day of an action for damages by another cabin crew member Cassandra Reddin who says she suffered back and neck injuries after the flight from Malaga landed in a heavy and dramatic way during bad weather.
Ms Reddin, 33, from Woodlands, Ratoath, Co Meath claims she was shocked and suffered the injuries during the Dublin landing in November 2009.
The former cabin crew member, who still works for the company, is suing Aer Lingus, claiming the flight descended at a rate three to four times what it should have and bounced on the runway a number of times.
She said passengers were screaming as bottles smashed in overhead lockers and liquid poured on top of them.
In court today, her colleague Ms Maher, now a senior cabin crew member, said it was the scariest flight she was ever on and one she would never forget.
Ms Maher told Mr Justice Michael Hanna: "It was the scariest flight ever to the point where I didn't think that any of us were going to be ok."
She said the aircraft was swaying from side to side and she was expecting it would not land but instead engage in a "go-around".
"It was swaying from side to side. It was not normal, I have never experienced it before or since," she said.
During cross examination she denied she had exaggerated the circumstances of the landing.
Senior cabin crew member on the flight Karen Fagan said she felt the plane had gone out of control on landing and she was minutes from declaring an emergency.
Ms Fagan said she was told by the captain on the flight not to discuss the incident with the other crew members while on the bus back to the terminal because the first officer was embarrassed about the landing. She said she was shocked by this unusual request.
Yesterday, Ms Reddin told the court she thought "we were all dead" when the flight from Malaga bounced three times as it landed at Dublin Airport.
She said she cried the whole evening at home afterwards and she was in shock. The next day she could not move her neck and also later suffered panic attacks.
The court heard Aer Lingus will deny the claims and will say the plane was landed expertly and safely.
The case continues tomorrow.
