A near-miss collision involving Southwest Flight 1496 left two flight attendants injured after the plane’s pilot was forced to respond to “onboard traffic alerts Friday afternoon while climbing out of Burbank, Calif.,” according to the airline.
The maneuver, requiring them to “descend to comply with the alerts,” was a rapid 475-foot drop to avoid a single-engine Hawker Hunter fighter jet, reported ABC News, citing FlightRadar24 data.
The Southwest flight had only been in the air for about six minutes after departing the Hollywood Burbank Airport when the incident occurred.
The airline said the flight continued to Las Vegas as planned. While no passengers were seriously harmed, two flight attendants were being treated for unspecified injuries.
Comedian Jimmy Dore and his producer posted a video on X describing their experience as passengers on that flight.
“It was a pilot taking an aggressive move because there was another plane coming at us,” he said.
Dore claimed the pilot’s sudden adjustment caused him and other passengers to fly out of their seats and bump their heads on the plane’s ceiling.
Another passenger told ABC News that the pilot announced the maneuver was performed to “avoid a midair collision.”
The Hawker Hunter aircraft was reportedly flying at 14,653 feet when the passenger jet began its defensive descent from 14,100 feet.
Southwest Airlines said it’s working with the Federal Aviation Administration to “further understand the circumstances” of Friday’s scare.
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