A former flight attendant for Singapore Airlines is suing the carrier for $1.3 million, saying it failed to provide a safe working environment that led to a career-ending injury.
Durairaj Santiran, 36, appeared on Tuesday in Singapore’s High Court, where he said that he slipped and hit his head while working a 17-hour flight in 2019 because of a grease patch on the plane, local media reported.
He was diagnosed with a cervical disc prolapse after the flight, which Durairaj said eventually prevented him from continuing work as a cabin crew member, per Singaporean daily The Straits Times.
Durairaj worked as a flight attendant for Singapore Airlines from April 2016 to April 2021, according to the paper.
In court, Durairaj said the incident occurred while he was working on an Airbus A350 flight from San Francisco to Singapore, about two hours before the aircraft was due to land, according to local TV outlet ChannelNewsAsia.
According to Durairaj, he initially noticed a three-inch, colorless grease patch in the economy class section while the plane was about to depart San Francisco, per CNA.
He told a senior flight attendant about it and was instructed to clean the patch with disinfectant and a paper towel, though he was unsuccessful, Durairaj said, per CNA.
After telling his superior that the patch remained, the crew tried to clean up the patch one more time, but couldn’t get rid of it, Durairaj said.
As the flight later approached Singapore, Durairaj slipped on the grease, struck his head on the floor, and later had to be escorted out of the plane with a wheelchair, he said, per CNA.
“Had reasonable care been exercised, the grease patch would have been removed or such steps taken to prevent access to the unsafe location,” Durairaj’s lawyers Ramasamy Chettiar and Kasturibai Manickam said in his opening statement, according to the outlet.
The cabin crew could have rolled a pushcart on top of the grease patch, the lawyers said as an example, per CNA.
Durairaj’s team said he is seeking $1.3 million in compensation, mostly for losses of future earnings and medical expenses.
Singapore Airlines’ lawyers disputed Durairaj’s claims, saying that no such grease patch existed and that Durairaj instead fell at another section of the aircraft, per The Straits Times.
Durairaj also filed separate work injury claims in 2017 and 2018 that the airline did not contest, Singapore Airlines’ legal team said, per The Straits Times.
Proceedings for his lawsuit are to be held over the next 10 days.
Singapore Airlines’ press team and lawyers for Durairaj did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
