Southwest Airlines Pilot Makes Exceptional Emergency Landing

Pia Bergqvist

Wednesday, April 18, 2018 at 11:24 PM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

Southwest Flight 1380 experienced a catastrophic engine failure mid-flight, suspected to be due to metal fatigue, leading to an emergency landing and increased inspections on similar engines.
One passenger tragically died after being partially sucked out of a shattered window, marking the first U.S.-based airline fatality since 2009.
Captain Tammy Jo Shults and her copilot demonstrated exceptional calm and professionalism in safely landing the damaged aircraft, saving 148 of 149 people onboard.
Despite the pilot's heroic actions, photos revealed many passengers incorrectly wore their oxygen masks, highlighting a potential lack of attention to safety briefings.

See a mistake? Contact us.

Embed from Getty Imageswindow.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:’fLj6a9mDRGlP-YPRwFUNkw’,sig:’VoUiF6fIb-tIATKuBjjtw3u3qrfgbf3JLZ6mgnUo2fI=’,w:’728px’,h:’364px’,items:’947834098′,caption: true ,tld:’com’,is360: false })});

A catastrophic engine failure caused Southwest Flight 1380 to make an emergency diversion to the Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) yesterday. The Boeing 737 was on its way from New York to Dallas when the engine exploded. Robert Sumwalt, chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, already announced that a fan blade sheered off of the CFM engine and that metal fatigue was suspected. A similar event happened to a Southwest flight two years ago. As a result, the engines of many Boeing 737s from multiple airlines are now undergoing additional metal fatigue inspections.