A Delta Air Lines flight was forced to make an emergency landing after the windshield cracked mid-flight.
The plane was heading from Atlanta to Los Angeles on Saturday, May 3 when the incident occurred. The Boeing 767-300 was traveling at 38,000 feet when the pilot announced over the intercom that the flight would be making an emergency landing in Albuquerque, CNN reports.
"I immediately thought someone was ill," passenger Jennifer Squires told CNN. "A few minutes later (the pilot) told us that because of pressure, the windshield in the cockpit arched, bubbled, and then shattered."
According to a Federal Aviation Administration spokesman, the entire windshield didn't break, "Our initial information was that the outside part of the windshield shattered but the interior part remained intact," FAA spokesman Lynn Lunsford told CNN.
"All windows and windshields are at least double paned," said Delta spokesman Morgan Durrant "This is a rare occurrence but the established procedure is to divert."
The incident didn't cause a loss in cabin pressure and the plane was able to land in abou 15 minutes. The flight had taken off from Atlanta at about 8:58 a.m. ET and landed in Albuqueque at 9:49 a.m. PT, or about two hours later.
"As I exited the plane, I asked if I could see the damage," Squires said. She was able to snap a picture of the windshield. "The pilot and co-pilot were in the cockpit, and I thanked them for getting us down safely."
Squires gave credit to the flight crew that kept operations normal despite the mishap."They were very calm. The whole crew was in fact very professional and quite calm. I really didn't fear for my life, and I don't think anyone else was overly reactive or worried."
The passengers were able to board other flights to Los Angeles following the incident.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
