A Southwest flight dropped 475 feet to avoid a “midair collision” with a Hawker Hunter aircraft.
Southwest flight 1496 took off from Hollywood Burbank Airport just before noon Friday, headed an hour east to Las Vegas. But about six minutes after departure, it rapidly descended from 14,100 feet to 13,625 feet, according to flight tracking website Flightradar24.
Passenger Steve Ulasewicz told ABC News that the pilot later announced the maneuver was necessary to “avoid a midair collision.” Ulasewicz further described the ordeal to NBC 4 Los Angeles: “The plane was just in a free fall. People were screaming. It was pandemonium.”
The Hawker Hunter craft was at about 14,653 feet when the commercial airliner began its descent, according to Flightradar24. A source told ABC there were several other Hawker Hunter planes in the vicinity as part of a normal operation.
Two flight attendants were injured in the process, Southwest said in a statement.
The airline added that it is communicating with the Federal Aviation Administration “to further understand the circumstances” of the near-collision.
The FAA said in a statement Friday night: “Southwest Airlines Flight 1496 responded to an onboard alert that another aircraft was in the vicinity while in Los Angeles Air Route Traffic Control Center airspace. The FAA is investigating the event that occurred around 11 a.m. local time on Friday, July 25.”
The Department of Transportation did not immediately respond to a comment request from the Daily Beast.
The Southwest flight landed in Las Vegas at 12:45 p.m. local time.
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