Twenty-one Vietnam Airlines passengers were injured on a Hanoi-Paris Charles de Gaulle flight today when the Boeing 777-200 aircraft encountered severe turbulence.

Nine of the 21 passengers were admitted to hospital, says a Paris-based spokesman for the airline, adding that the injuries were not severe enough to warrant an emergency landing.

"As far as we know, it was only people not wearing their seatbelts who were injured," adds the spokesman, who says he is unaware of any damage to the aircraft.

Source: Air Transport Intelligence news