A Southwest Airline jet heading to Las Vegas from Southern California experienced a dramatic plunge shortly after takeoff due to an alert about a nearby plane. The incident resulted in injuries to two flight attendants. Southwest flight 1496 was responding to an onboard alert about another aircraft in its vicinity, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
The crew responded to two air alerts that required the pilot to climb then descend, Southwest confirmed in a statement. The flight took off from Hollywood Burbank Airport just before noon.
Passengers shared on social media that the plane underwent a significant drop shortly after taking off. Data from the flight tracking site FlightAware indicates that it dropped approximately 300 feet (91.44 meters) in 36 seconds.
Comedian Jimmy Dore mentioned, “Pilot said his collision warning went off & he needed to avoid the plane coming at us,” in a post on X.
The plane was observed in the same airspace near Burbank as a Hawker Hunter Mk. 58 just after noon local time, as per FlightAware. A Hawker Hunter is a British fighter plane owned by Hawker Hunter Aviation Ltd, a British defense contracting company. There has been no immediate response from the company to inquiries seeking comment.
Mike Christensen, an airport spokesman for Hollywood Burbank, stated that neither the control tower nor the operations department, which tracks planes departing and arriving, have any record of the Southwest flight plunging in their airspace.
Southwest reported that the flight continued to Las Vegas and landed without further incidents. The airline mentioned that it is collaborating with the FAA to gain further insights into the circumstances surrounding the event.
This incident serves as a reminder of the ongoing concerns about aviation safety, particularly following the tragic midair collision over Washington, D.C., in January that claimed 67 lives.
