A Southwest Airlines flight made an early landing over Oklahoma City on Wednesday, startling residents miles from the airport, regained altitude and then landed safely.
After starting its descent from 39,000 feet, the Boeing 737-800, flight no. 4069, en route from Las Vegas to Oklahoma City, was nine miles from the airport when it reached an altitude of 525 feet, reports The Associated Press. Press quoted Flightradar24 data. Then the plane went up again Up to about 3,000 feet before successfully landing at its planned destination Will Rogers World Airport at 12:16 a.m. local time.
An automatic alert was triggered at low altitude, and an air traffic controller alerted the pilots, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement.
“Southwest 4069, low altitude alert. Are you all right in there?” the controller can be heard saying inside A recording from LiveATC.net Will be given to The Oklahoman newspaper.
The FAA said it is investigating the incident.
The plane made landfall over Yukon City, west of Oklahoma City. Some residents of the area reported on social media that they were panicked by the jet’s noise and low trajectory.
“Southwest follows its robust security management system and is in contact with the Federal Aviation Administration to understand and address any irregularities in airport access,” the airline said in a statement.
There is no indication that the incident was caused by any mechanical failure, but Boeing planes have been involved in several recent safety incidents.
Notably, a door panel from an Alaska Airlines 737 Max 9 jet exploded in January, leading some planes to make a temporary grounding, as the company plans to improve safety and the company’s chief executive, Dave Calhoun, apologized.
