Passenger Hurt in Jet Engine Mishap
A commuter jet passenger was injured slightly Friday when the covering to a jet engine broke loose, hitting and shattering a window next to her seat.
The right engine cowling on American Eagle Flight 5136 from San Francisco broke the window about 8 a.m., midway through the 53-minute flight, said Gina Ruckols, a spokeswoman for the San Luis Obispo-based subsidiary of American Airlines.
The Metro 3 twin-engine turbo-prop jet landed without incident at 8:27 a.m., two minutes before its scheduled arrival at Sacramento Metro Airport, according to an airport spokeswoman.
A woman seated in the fourth row suffered cuts on her right forearm when the window shattered, Ruckols said. The woman’s name was not immediately available. Ruckols said the woman left on a connecting flight after arriving in Sacramento.
There were 13 passengers aboard the 19-passenger aircraft, which left San Francisco International Airport at 7:36 a.m., she said.
Ruckols said the jet captain, Ken Brougher, and first officer, Bill Allen, declared an emergency in order to get immediate clearance to land. “They said it was no problem and the aircraft landed beautifully,” Ruckols said.
The National Transportation Safety Board will investigate, she said.
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