Here's how the FAA describes what happened to Southwest flight 1380
The FAA just issued its statement on what happened to Southwest flight 1380. (The agency notes this is preliminary and subject to change.)
Southwest Airlines Flight 1380 landed at Philadelphia International Airport this morning after the crew reported damage to one of the aircraft’s engines, as well as the fuselage and at least one window.The aircraft, which departed from New York LaGuardia Airport, diverted to Philadelphia, where it landed at 11:20 a.m. Eastern. Passengers exited the aircraft using air stairs.Please contact local emergency response officials for information on the condition of the passengers.The FAA is investigating the incident and the National Transportation Safety Board has been notified. The NTSB will be in charge of the investigation.
Aviation expert: These engines are usually "extraordinarily reliable"
CNN aviation analyst Peter Goelz said a type of engine that is usually "extraordinarily reliable" likely came apart on the Southwest flight, causing today's emergency landing.
"I have been on scene on these kinds of disasters — they're very rare, the turbofan engine is extraordinarily reliable," he said. "But in this case it looks like it came apart midair."
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Passenger: "All of a sudden we just heard this loud bang"
Southwest passenger Kristopher Johnson just spoke to CNN and recounted his experience on the plane that landed at Philadelphia airport moments ago.
Here's what he said:
We were leaving LaGuardia heading to Dallas. We were west of Philadelphia probably about 30,000 feet, and all of a sudden we just heard this loud bang, rattling and then it felt like one of theengines went out. The oxygen masks dropped and flight attendants did a good job. The pilot came on and said we're diverting to Philadelphia and, you know, there was a serious medical injury. I don't know much about that, but I was sitting in the front. With a couple passengers. We just got the mask on and as soon as we landed, we were thankful. The pilots did a great job, the crew did a great job. They got us down to Philly, and that's when I took the photo of the engine, and it appeared that it just shredded the left side engine completely. So we were coming down -- we dropped probably from 30,000 feet to 25,000 feet, and then the pilot kind of regained control and brought it down safely to Philadelphia. So we got off the plane and onto buses and we're trying to head over to the tarmac in Philly.
He added: "It was pretty scary, but the pilots did a great job."
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Ground stop issued at Philadelphia International Airport
The Philadelphia International Airport tweeted that the FAA has issued a ground stop for planes at other airports scheduled to leave for PHL.
Boeing is aware and on standby
The Southwest flight that was diverted due to an engine issue was a Boeing 737-700. The manufacturer tweeted that it is aware of the incident and ready to help.
A different Southwest flight made an emergency landing in February due to engine fire
From CNN's Madison Park
An engine on a Southwest Airlines plane caught fire in February during a flight, forcing the aircraft to return safely to the Salt Lake City airport shortly after takeoff,CNN affiliate KUTVreported.
The flight's pilots, who were en route to Los Angeles, conducted an emergency landing, said Nancy Volmer, a Salt Lake City International Airport spokeswoman, the station reported.
Passenger Crystal Bangerter was taking her first flight ever when she saw "huge flames just coming right out of the engine."
Read more about that emergency landing here.
Passenger: "It definitely was a stable landing"
Kristopher Johnson was a passenger on the Southwest flight that made an emergency landing in Philadelphia.
He said that despite losing one of its engines, the plane made a "typical landing."
"It definitely was a stable landing," he told CNN. "When we finally landed it was relatively smooth. Kind of a typical landing."
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One passenger taken to the hospital
One passenger from Southwest Airlines 1380 has been transported to a Philadelphia hospital, according to CNN Philadelphia affiliates.
Philadelphia airport still in business while passengers are brought inside
A Twitter account for Philadelphia's airport said that passengers from Flight 1380 were now being brought inside the terminal, and that flights were departing and arriving but "passengers should expect delays."
