A former child pop star-turned-yoga instructor scarred her vocal cords aboard a Singapore Airlines flight to Los Angeles when she “unknowingly swallowed a jagged wooden splinter” that broke away from a chicken satay skewer served with the in-flight meal and became lodged in her throat, according to a federal lawsuit reviewed by The Independent.

In her complaint, 44-year-old Briohny Smyth, who at the age of 13 had a platinum album in Thailand and now teaches yoga in L.A., claims the trapped fragment caused “immediate pain,” “violent coughing” and terrifying “choking sensations.”

She also endured “substantial pain and emotional distress while attempting to expel the foreign object during the flight,” states the complaint, which was filed July 24 in Los Angeles federal court.

Smyth, who was seated in business class, “ultimately expelled a jagged wooden shard approximately 1.5 inches in length,” it says.

Following the July 28, 2024 incident, Smyth “experienced persistent throat discomfort, vocal fatigue, raspiness, tightness, and pain with prolonged speaking and singing,” according to the complaint. She subsequently consulted an otolaryngologist, who “identified scarring and trauma to [Smyth’s] vocal cords consistent with injury from a sharp foreign object.”

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Smyth was “consuming the meal as intended,” and not at fault, the complaint contends.

It describes her as a “professional singer, performer, wellness educator and public speaker,” and says her livelihood “substantially depends upon the integrity and performance of her voice.”

As a result of swallowing the shard, Smyth has suffered, among other things, bodily injury, loss of earning capacity, professional harm and “anxiety associated with eating and flying,” according to the complaint.

Last year, a New York City medical doctor with a severe shellfish allergy sued Singapore Airlines after being served a meal containing shrimp. The flight from Frankfurt to New York’s JFK International Airport had to divert to Paris, where Dr. Doreen Benary, who claims to have informed flight attendants of her dietary restrictions, was rushed to the hospital.

In 2024, A New Jersey woman sued JetBlue after breaking an incisor on an ice cream sandwich she described in court papers as “dangerously cold,” and “at a temperature below what is reasonable or safe for consumption,” arguing the cabin crew should have warned her that the treat was “frozen solid.”

Karla Quinonez said in a federal complaint that she needed an emergency tooth extraction immediately upon landing, a subsequent implant and continuing care after that, blaming her “pain, suffering, and mental anguish” solely on JetBlue’s “negligent acts.”

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Last November, a 3-year-old girl with a severe dairy allergy was hospitalized after a Qatar Airways flight attendant allegedly gave the child a chocolate bar despite warnings from the toddler’s mother not to serve her anything containing milk.

When North Carolina resident Swetha Neerukonda returned to her seat from the bathroom, the shocked parent confronted the flight attendant, who “mocked and mitigated” her concerns as the toddler went into anaphylaxis and her vital signs declined, according to a $5 million lawsuit.

Upon landing, the child’s condition worsened and she spent two days in the intensive care unit until being stabilized, the lawsuit said.

Smyth still sings, and a 2011 yoga video she appeared in went viral, garnering nearly 16 million views on YouTube to date.

She is now seeking damages for past and future medical expenses, past and future loss of earnings and earning capacity, emotional distress associated with bodily injury, plus legal costs and pre- and post-judgment interest.

Singapore Airlines did not respond to a request for comment.

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