t least ....
At the speed with which they came down .. they would certainly have some effect at the eardrums due to pressure difference ... (hurt feeling)
Even at reasonable rate of descent you feel this (even if cabin pressurised)
In a media report / briefing there was some talk of the passengers knowing/not knowing of the decent over 4 minutes.. I was unable to find any reference to this comment in print anywhere. Could someone point me in that direction. Additional query would be if the sensation of rocking and falling would feel like bad turbulence or would there have been a sensation of weightlessness / Incapacitation etc.
Not a lawyer!!!