South
Terrified passengers ‘flew out of their seats’ during dramatic Southwest nosedive to avoid mid-air crash
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Passengers aboard Southwest flight 1496 from Burbank, California to Las Vegas, Nevada experienced a frightening few seconds when the aircraft took a sudden nosedive to avoid a midair collision shortly after takeoff.
The dramatic maneuver caused passengers to fly up out of their seats and into the ceiling as children and adults screamed, fearing the worst.
Two flight attendants are being treated for injuries, a Southwest Airlines spokesperson told Fox News Digital.
The Southwest Airlines flight reportedly had to perform a nose dive to avoid an incoming plane. (Kevin Carter/Getty Images)
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Caitlin Burdi, who was on flight 1496, told Fox News Digital she had been on the same flight path before, so she knew the extreme turbulence was abnormal.
“About 10 minutes into the flight, we plummeted pretty far, and I looked around, and everyone was like, ‘OK, that’s normal’,” Burdi said. “Then, within two seconds, it felt like the ride Tower of Terror, where we fell 20 to 30 feet in the air. The screaming, it was terrifying. We really thought we were plummeting to a plane crash.”
Southwest confirmed the crew responded to two onboard traffic alerts after takeoff, at about 11 a.m. local time, “requiring them to climb and descend to comply with the alerts.”
At least one flight attendant was injured in the incident, passengers said. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
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The airline said the flight continued to Las Vegas, where it landed “uneventfully,” according to a statement.
“Southwest is engaged with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to further understand the circumstances,” Southwest wrote. “We appreciate the professionalism of our Flight Crew and Flight Attendants in responding to this event. Nothing is more important to Southwest than the Safety of our Customers and Employees.”
The FAA noted “another aircraft was in the vicinity while in Los Angeles Air Route Traffic Control Center airspace.”
Passengers took to social media to share their harrowing stories of the flight. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
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One flight attendant was dazed after hitting her head, passengers said. Another flight attendant announced he was quitting.
Following the dramatic drop, the pilot came on the intercom and said the plane almost collided with another plane, and they had lost air traffic control signal.
“It was absolutely terrifying,” Burdi said. “I just remember him saying, ‘What just happened was we almost collided with another plane, and I had to make the emergency attempt to go under because we lost service with the air traffic controller.’”
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Other passengers on the fearful flight took to social media to share their experience.
“Myself & Plenty of people flew out of their seats & bumped heads on ceiling, a flight attendant needed medical attention,” stand-up comedian Jimmy Dore wrote in an X post. “Pilot said his collision warning went off & he needed to avoid plane coming at us. Wow.”
The FAA said it is investigating.
There are just two days remaining before the 2026 NBA Draft. While the Dallas Mavericks still don’t have a head coach in place, rumors are starting to heat up about their draft plans. They have new management, led by team president Masai Ujiri and general manager Mike Schmitz, which could send the team in an entirely new direction.
As of Sunday, they enter the draft with the 9th, 30th, and 48th overall picks. According to reports, the Mavericks are willing to move up or down the board if the right players are available. There have been a lot of talks of them moving down, in particular, as the Oklahoma City Thunder and Charlotte Hornets each have two picks between 12 and 18.
If they are to trade down, NBA insider Jake Fischer has identified a possible prospect they would target: Washington’s Hannes Steinbach.
“Sources say that Steinbach, whose father, Burkhard, played alongside Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki on the German League team in their shared hometown of Wurzburg some 30 years ago, is among the prospects to have worked out for the Mavericks under consideration for the No. 9 pick,” Stein wrote on Saturday night.
Steinbach averaged 18.5 PPG while leading the country in rebounding at 11.8 RPG. At 6’10”, 248 pounds, and a 7’2″ wingspan, he also has the ability to stretch to three, hitting 18 of his 53 attempts in his lone year in college.
The Mavericks love the natives of Wurzburg, Germany. Obviously, the greatest player in franchise history is from there, but so was Maxi Kleber. An easy way to get the fans back on the team’s side is to get another German.
Drafting Hannes Steinbach Could Trigger Another Trade
If the Mavericks do end up leaving the 2026 NBA Draft with Hannes Steinbach, they would likely need to trade Daniel Gafford to make the roster work. Gafford is entering the first season of a three-year, $54 million contract extension, and with Dereck Lively II entering the final year of his rookie deal, they may extend him soon, even with the injuries.
Gafford drew trade interest at last season’s deadline, but they ended up hanging on to him once they traded Anthony Davis, believing they could get a first-round pick for him if they held out. Depending on how the draft shakes out Tuesday night, they might get that chance.
The Mavericks need to upgrade their backcourt, but if they’re able to trade back and add a player like Labaron Philon and a frontcourt player like Hannes Steinbach, it would be hard to complain.
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It was only a year ago that Duncan Robinson was traded to Detroit in a sign-and-trade for Simone Fontecchio. Now, in the present, the Miami Heat are in the mix for Giannis Antetokounmpo, a trade that would likely include multiple teams, one of which is the Detroit Pistons.
The Pistons are rumored to have interest in the Miami Heat’s star guard Tyler Herro, and they would have to match the salary they take in to be eligible to make a deal. Some combination of Ducnan Robinson, Isaiah Stewart, Caris LeVert, and Paul Reed, would make the deal legal.
Said on Off the Floor a bit ago…. do not rule out the return of Duncan Robinson to Miami.
— Five Reasons Sports 🏀🏈⚾️🏒⚽️ (@5ReasonsSports) June 20, 2026
Why Miami Should Bring Him Back
The all-time Miami Heat leader in three-pointers made would be a perfect fit for a team led by Giannis and Bam Adebayo. The talks about Miami acquiring Giannis have gone straight to, who will score? Bring Duncan back, who had a career year in Detroit and that problem is solved, at least partially (the roster would still need more pieces).
The dribble hand offs, Duncan’s cutting ability, his three-point prowess, it would instantly make Miami’s offense more dangerous and would give them the opportunity to decide on retaining Norman Powell, or using the money tied up to him for other players.
Duncan Robinson had a Net on/off of +10.4 and was huge to Detroit’s success this past season. When Robinson was on the floor, the Pistons were better, simply put.
Tyler Herro to Pistons as part of 3-team trade that would send Giannis Antetokounmpo to Heat “picking up steam,” per @KuKhahil.
— Underdog NBA (@UnderdogNBA) June 20, 2026
What This Means for a Deal
Because Detroit originally acquired Duncan Robinson via sign-and-trade, he is legally barred from returning to Miami during the current league year. For a multi-team blockbuster to bring both Robinson and Giannis Antetokounmpo to South Beach, the trade must be agreed to in principle now, but held until the new league year opens on July 1st.
This timing works perfectly for draft assets, allowing Miami to select at No. 13 on Milwaukee’s behalf. Furthermore, a July 1st execution date becomes mandatory if Nikola Jovic is involved due to his poison-pill restriction, and it opens the door to an even larger framework if Andrew Wiggins opts into his player option or Norman Powell enters the mix as a sign-and-trade candidate.
Getting Duncan Robinson back would be HUGE for the Miami Heat
— Austin Dobbins (@AustinDobbins13) June 20, 2026
Duncan Robinson averaged 18 points per game in the second round of this year’s playoffs and shot an incredible 58.8% from three.
Acquiring Giannis is step one for the Miami Heat, but filling out the roster is equally as important as depth wins, especially late in the year.
Bringing back Duncan Robinson is a real possibility, and it would be a huge win for the Miami Heat.
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The Atlanta Falcons are looking to return to the playoffs for the first time since 2017, and they’ll be relying on a new coaching staff to help them get there. But Kevin Stefanski is no rookie; he’s a two-time NFL Coach of the Year, only now he’ll be working with an entirely different group of personnel after coaching in Cleveland since 2020.
In addition to a new coach, the Falcons may have a different starting quarterback as Michael Penix Jr. continues to rehab last season’s torn ACL. He’ll also be competing with Tua Tagovailoa. Together, the Falcons believe they can compete for a playoff spot in the NFC South, but to do so, they’ll need all the help they can get. Unfortunately, the Falcons may not have everyone on hand to start the season.
According to The Athletic‘s Falcons insider Josh Kendall, the NFL is “likely” to suspend edge rusher James Pearce Jr.
Pearce faces three felony charges after an incident with his former girlfriend, WNBA player Rickea Jackson. Pearce’s charges are for aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, fleeing the police, and resisting arrest with violence.
“Atlanta now appears to be waiting on the NFL to decide on Pearce. Under the league’s personal conduct policy, commissioner Roger Goodell has wide latitude to impose discipline regardless of the outcome of the criminal case. The league is likely to suspend Pearce. Steelers defensive back Cam Sutton was suspended eight games in 2024 after a domestic violence incident that began as a felony charge but was eventually reduced to a misdemeanor. Goodell could also place Pearce on the commissioner’s exempt list, which serves as an indefinite suspension while the league gathers more information.”
The Athletic’s Josh Kendall on James Pearce
Pearce is coming off an excellent rookie season that saw him record a team-high 10.5 sacks while starting three of his 17 appearances. The 26th overall pick in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft looks like he’s poised to be a star. Yet, now the 22-year-old may have to wait to start his second NFL season. The question is how long?
If Pearce is forced to miss time, the Falcons will be counting on others, such as fellow 2025 first-round pick Jalon Walker, to make a bigger impact. The 22-year-old Walker recorded 5.5 sacks, making nine sacks in 15 appearances.
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