A Southwest Airlines flight on Friday was forced to swiftly descend over Hollywood Burbank Airport to avert a “midair collision,” according to passengers and the airline.
At least two flight attendants were injured in the maneuver on Flight 1496, which was bound for Las Vegas.
Flight passenger Steve Ulasewicz described feeling a “significant drop,” adding the pilot told the rattled flyers that the crew had to pull off the emergency move to “avoid a midair collision,” ABC News reported.
Southwest Airlines told Newsweek that the flight was forced to “climb and descend” over Burbank after receiving two “onboard traffic alerts.”
Why It Matters
The near miss is the latest in a series of global aviation incidents that have reignited debate over air traffic oversight, pilot training and reliance on automated warning systems.
On Monday, a plane landing in Mexico City almost crashed into a Delta Air Lines flight at Benito Juarez International Airport.
On January 29, a commercial jetliner and Army helicopter collided in Washington, D.C., killing 67 people. Two days later, a medical transport plane crashed in Philadelphia, killing all six people onboard and one person on the ground.
The deadly January crashes led President Donald Trump to announce plans to revamp the nation’s aging aviation safety infrastructure.
What To Know
Passenger and comedian Jimmy Dore said many onboard had been flung out of their seats and had “bumped their heads on the ceiling.”
After the sudden descent, the pilot informed passengers that the maneuver was ordered to avoid another aircraft, and that there had been a temporary loss of contact with air traffic control.
“Pilot said his collision warning went off & he needed to avoid plane coming at us,” Dore added in a post on X. “Wow.”
Caitlin Burdi, a fellow passenger, described the “terrifying” moment the flight suddenly plummeted.
“It felt like the ride Tower of Terror, where we fell 20 to 30 feet,” she told Fox News Digital. “I just remember [the pilot] 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.’”
Southwest Airlines told Newsweek that no injuries had been reported by customers, although the two flight attendants were being medically treated.
The flight was able to continue to its destination of Las Vegas, where it landed “uneventfully.”
“Southwest is engaged with the Federal Aviation Administration [FAA] to further understand the circumstances,” an airline spokesperson said.
What People Are Saying
A Southwest Airlines spokesperson also told Newsweek: “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.”
Burdi also told Fox News Digital: “The screaming, it was terrifying. We really thought we were plummeting to a plane crash.”
A Hollywood Burbank Airport spokesperson told Newsweek:“There’s no evidence of any incident similar to what you’re describing happening in the immediate vicinity of our airport.”
What Happens Next
Southwest and FAA officials have launched an investigation into the cause and sequence of events that led to the emergency maneuver. They’re reviewing air traffic control communications, radar data and cockpit recordings. The ongoing probes will focus on determining whether procedural lapses or technical issues contributed to the risk of collision.
