About 12 passengers were injured when a flight hit turbulence over the Atlantic, according to newspaper reports.

Some passengers hit their heads so hard on the ceiling that the cabin suffered ‘internal damage’, said the Independent.

One passenger claimed to have a broken nose and one was allegedly ‘paralysed for three minutes’.

Three of the passengers were taken to hospital when the flight landed seven hours later in Argentina, but the airline insisted in a statement that none was seriously hurt.

Aerolinas Argentinas said passengers on the flight from Madrid to Buenos Aires had been warned the aircraft was about to hit turbulence and the seatbelt lights were switched on.

It said that some passengers hadn’t returned to their seats and buckled up when the plane suddenly plunged, causing some to be thrown upwards out of their seats.

Passengers claimed onTwitter that the seatbelt signs were never switched on.

One passenger told the Spanish newspaper El Pais: “I have a small bruise, but another colleague was paralysed for three minutes and another broke the septum of her nose.

“Nobody went back to sleep and that there were another seven hours left. I was scared and I had a hard time with every slight movement.”

Another wrote on Twitter: “I have been one of the most affected and possibly have a broken septum.

“I hit my head on the ceiling and broke it [the ceiling panel]. Yes, I had my belt on at 7 o’clock and just when I took it off it happened, but THERE WAS NO NOTICE.”

Aerolineas Argentinas said in a statement on Twitter: “As a result of severe turbulence on flight AR 1133 from Madrid, which landed at Ezeiza airport at 4:30, 9 passengers had to be treated with various minor injuries.

“They were immediately released by airport medical staff, while another 3 had to be transferred for a more thorough examination.

“According to what was reported by the crew, the seat belt indicator signs were on and the corresponding announcement had been made.

“The passengers who were the most compromised and who were the ones who had to be transferred, did not have their seat belts on at the time of the turbulence.

“The event occurred over the Atlantic Ocean entering the American continent and the plane, an A330 with registration LV-FVH, was carrying 13 crew members and 271 passengers.”