Southwest Airplane Drops Quickly And Almost Hits OceanWell, a Boeing 737 Max 8 passenger jet operated by Southwest Airlines in April plummeted from about 1,000 feet off the coast of Kaua‘i near Līhuʻe Airport, coming within just 400 feet and a matter of only seconds from crashing into the ocean before its crew pulled the aircraft up, climbing rapidly, to avoid the almost disaster. The Federal Aviation Administration, after inquiries from Bloomberg News, is investigating the mishap that previously was unreported. It happened after adverse weather conditions forced pilots to abort landing at the Kaua‘i airport because pilots couldn’t see the runway. According to Southwest’s memo, it wasn’t a Boeing error during the storm, but rather the plane’s captain had put a less experienced first officer in command of the short flight. As the plunge began, a warning system began blaring, alerting the pilots that the aircraft was getting too close to the surface. That triggered an order from the captain to hike thrust, after which the plane climbed at an aggressive 8,500 feet per minute. Witnesses described it as a “roller coaster ride.”
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