After taking off from Cancun, Mexico, on October 30, a packed JetBlue airliner seemed well on its way for just another uneventful flight. It had reached its cruising altitude of 35,000 feet, at which point the plane practically flies itself, and passengers begin to unwind, unbuckle their seatbelts, and bother their rear neighbors by reclining too far. Its destination: Newark, New Jersey.

Then it suddenly dropped in altitude.

The pilots regained control of the plane, an Airbus A320, but the plunge was so violent and abrupt that at least three passengers cut their heads open after smashing them on the ceiling. After making an emergency landing in Florida, 15 were taken to the hospital.

The cause wasn’t immediately clear. But after grounding more than 6,000 of its planes last week, Airbus

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