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A Southwest Airlines jet had to make an emergency landing over the weekend after it suffered a “pressurization issue in flight” — marking the company’s third safety scare in the past month.
The incident left passengers fearing for their lives, with some claiming that there was “no communication whatsoever” from flight attendants or the cockpit, Dallas station KTVT reports.
“I had no idea what was going on or what the outcome was going to be,” passenger Glen Eichelberger told the station, noting how he “reached over and grabbed” his friend by the arm.
“I didn’t know if we were going to make it or not,” Eichelberger added. “There was no communication whatsoever from the flight attendants or from the cockpit as far whether we were in mortal danger.”
Flight 861 was traveling from Denver to Dallas on Saturday night — with 100 passengers on board — when the cabin began to lose pressure at roughly 20,000 feet, according to officials.
Oxygen masks were deployed around 9 p.m. local time, just as the plane was arriving in the DFW area.
Southwest officials tried downplaying the incident afterward — telling KTVT that it was “uneventful.” But several passengers said otherwise.
“When you’re in the air 20,000 feet above the ground and don’t know what’s going on it’s not uneventful,” explained Eichelberger.
The airline didn’t initially know what caused the pressurization issue, but said it was investigating. The jet was taken out of commission and is reportedly undergoing a maintenance review.
Saturday’s incident was the third known midflight scare for Southwest, known for its safety record, in the past month.
On April 17, a woman was killed when an engine exploded and sent shrapnel through a window and into the cabin. A Southwest plane was then forced to make an emergency landing just weeks later due to a cracked window.