Jet Lands Safely at Burbank After Report of Object Falling
A Southwest Airlines jet circled Burbank Airport before landing Friday, in response to the reported sighting of an object falling from the airliner, but it landed safely and without incident.
The Boeing 737 left Sacramento around 12:30 p.m. with 110 passengers aboard, said airline officials. On departure, the air traffic control tower in Sacramento was notified that someone on the ground had seen something drop from the plane. However, Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Kirsti Dunn said the sighting wasn’t specified as Southwest Flight 1410.
“Someone reported seeing something falling off of some plane around that point of time,” she said. “Whether it was this Southwest flight hasn’t been confirmed.”
The pilots were notified by air traffic controllers about the potential problem. No mechanical failures were reported by the flight crew.
Precautionary measures were taken at Burbank Airport, where emergency crews were waiting on the tarmac, said airport spokesman Vincent Gill. The flight crew was told to circle the airport once so controllers in the tower could see whether there were any visible problems. Seeing nothing wrong, the plane was cleared and made a safe landing.
A subsequent inspection of the plane didn’t show any defects or missing parts, said Southwest spokeswoman Christine Turneabe-Connelly.
The plane resumed service following the maintenance check and flew to San Jose, airport officials added.
Risling is a Times Community News correspondent.
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