Plane drops 15,000 feet over India

A passenger plane flying from Dubai to India yesterday plunged 200 feet (60 metres) after hitting air turbulence, injuring 20 people, officials from the Emirates airline said.
The jet with 350 passengers on board landed safely at its destination of Kochi in south India shortly after the incident, which occurred off the coastal state of Goa.
The plane "encountered a short period of heavy turbulence while cruising at 35,000 feet," Majid Al Mualla, Emirates senior vice president, said in a statement.
"It experienced a 200-foot descent in altitude. There were 350 passengers on board the flight, 20 of whom suffered minor injuries."
Medical teams treated injured passengers at the airport, he said.
Earlier reports had cited local airline officials in Kochi saying the plane had dropped 15,000 feet before the pilot regained control, but senior airline officials later dismissed the figure.