An American Airlines flight made an emergency landing early Wednesday morning at Narita International Airport after hitting severe turbulence that injured 12 people aboard.
Among the people hurt on the Dallas-bound flight were a female passenger and a male flight attendant who sustained serious injuries, the transport ministry's Narita office said.
The Japan Safety Transport Board on Wednesday dispatched three investigators to look into the accident.
Flight 280 departed Incheon International Airport near Seoul at 6:15 p.m. on Tuesday, Japan time, carrying 240 passengers and 15 crew members. The flight encountered the turbulence around 7:30 p.m., the office said.
The Narita airport meteorological observatory issued a wind shear caution on Tuesday afternoon, as two powerful low pressure systems enveloped Honshu.
Exhausted passengers on the Boeing 777 emerged at a Narita airport lobby shortly after 2 a.m. on Wednesday after the emergency landing.
As the aircraft was shaken for some 20 minutes during dinner time, food and drinks were thrown around the cabin and some passengers started panicking, one passenger reported.
A male flight attendant was thrown into the ceiling, striking his head, another passenger said.