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Passenger partially sucked out of plane after engine explodes 1 killed, passenger nearly sucked out of plane after engine explosion on Southwest flight
(about 7 hours later)
One person has died after a Southwest Airlines flight was forced to execute an emergency landing in Philadelphia, the US National Transportation Safety Board has confirmed. One person has died and another was almost sucked out of a shattered window after a Southwest Airlines flight suffered a critical engine malfunction and was forced to execute an emergency landing in Philadelphia.
Part of the plane's engine ripped off and damaged the jet. A woman was partially sucked out of the aircraft when the cabin rapidly depressurized. It is understood she was the fatally injured victim. Passengers on Southwest Airlines Flight 1380 had their worst fears materialize on Tuesday morning when their aircraft was nearly torn apart in midair following an engine explosion. At the time of the incident, the Boeing 737-700 had 143 passengers and five crew members onboard when the plane bound for Dallas left LaGuardia Airport.
One passenger’s father-in-law said the impact of the engine piece striking the plane window was so severe that a female passenger was partially sucked out of the cabin. A 43-year-old vice president of community relations for Wells Fargo, Jennifer Riordan, died in the accident. At least seven more people were treated at the scene for minor injuries, while one passenger was taken to a hospital in a critical condition, fire officials noted.
“One passenger, a woman, was partially … was drawn out towards the out of the plane … was pulled back in by other passengers,” he told the Philadelphia-based NBC affiliate WCAU.
The woman was identified as Jennifer Riordan, 43, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, according to KOAT-TV. The mother of two worked as the VP of community relations at Wells Fargo and was on her way back from a business trip in New York City.
Flight 1380 took off from LaGuardia Airport at 10.27am local time, bound for Dallas. Less than an hour later, the pilot was forced to take emergency action due to engine damage. The pilot, who managed to land the plane in almost impossible circumstances, was identified as Tammie Jo Shults, one of the first female fighter pilots in the US Navy and the first woman to fly F-18 fighters.
The pilot was identified as Tammie Jo Shults, one of the first female fighter pilots in the US Navy and the first woman to fly F-18 fighters. While the cause of the fatal incident is still under investigation, it is believed that the engine blew apart less than an hour after taking off at 10.27am local time. Part of the engine then shattered one of the cabin windows – through which a female passenger was nearly sucked out.
Shults calmly informed ground control that she had a “part of the aircraft missing” and that the crew “said there is a hole and someone went out.” Passenger Marty Martinez shared photos and videos taken during the flight and described his terrifying experience. “Engine exploded in the air and blew open window 3 seats away from me,” Martinez wrote on Facebook.
According to Flight Aware, which tracks the flight paths of commercial airlines, the passenger plane set down at Philadelphia International Airport at 11.23am. The aircraft landed safely and passengers have been transported to the terminal, a statement from the airport read. “There’s evidence of metal fatigue where the blade separated,” the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) chairman Robert Sumwalt told reporters, revealing that one of the engine’s 24 fan blades had broken off and was missing. The engine’s covering, or cowling, was found about 70 miles from the Philadelphia airport, the official noted.
Images taken by passengers on board the stricken Boeing 737 plane show significant damage to the left engine.
"What a flight! Made it! Still here," wrote one passenger.
Another clearly relieved passenger added: "I want to thank the crew of SWA 1380 for a great job getting us to the ground safely after losing an engine."
Southwest Airlines say an investigation into the incident is now underway. “Safety is always our top priority at Southwest Airlines, and we are working diligently to support our customers and crews at this time,” it said in a brief statement.
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