Delta pilots land jet safely after cockpit windshield cracks

The pilots on a Delta Air Lines flight from Salt Lake City to Washington, D.C. determined to carry their jet down in Denver after the cockpit windshield shattered above 30,000 toes. The crew repeatedly instructed passengers to stay calm till they landed.

“They came on the loudspeaker saying that the windshield had shattered, and we were diverting to Denver in about 10 minutes,” Rachel Wright, one of many 198 passengers on the airplane, instructed KUTV.

A photograph of the windshield taken by a passenger exhibits the glass, although lined with cracks, didn’t fall from its body. Commercial airline pilots stated jetliner windshields might be two inches thick, with a number of layered panes of glass, the station reported.

The crew introduced the diversion about 90 minutes into the flight, after the airplane reached cruising altitude, which is above 30,000 toes, passengers stated.

“They kept coming on saying for everyone to stay calm, to be calm, and we were calm so being told to stay calm while we were calm made us feel a little panicky,” Wright stated.

Passengers had been in a position to see the shattered glass as soon as they landed in Denver.

“I’m really good at playing what-if? And so, my mind goes to kind of what could have happened, worst case scenario and I’m grateful,” Wright stated. “It could have been really bad, it could have gone very differently.”

Another passenger, Kirk Knowlton, snapped an image and tweeted that the crew had introduced that the windscreen appeared to crack spontaneously.

Delta gave a press release to KUTV calling it “a maintenance issue mid-flight.”

“Out of an abundance of caution, the flight crew diverted into Denver and the plane landed routinely. Our team worked quickly to accommodate customers on a new plane, and we sincerely apologize for the delay and inconvenience to their travel plans,” the airline assertion stated.

Passengers boarded a brand new airplane in Denver and continued on to Washington. Wright praised Delta for bringing the jet down safely, and stated the airline was very accommodating.

“I’ve never been more grateful to spend an extra three hours in an airport,” Wright stated.