Passengers aboard a Spirit Airlines flight from Jamaica to Florida had a terrifying experience when they were told to prepare for an emergency water landing.
Flight NK270 was forced to return to its original destination, Montego Bay, shortly after takeoff on Saturday following a “suspected mechanical issue,” according to reports. CBS News.
Video from inside the cabin shows some of the more than 200 passengers wearing life jackets amid the chaos.
However, the Airbus A321 landed safely at Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay and guests were able to disembark normally.
Spirit added that the “mechanical issue did not affect the safety of the flight” and that the emergency landing instructions were given “out of an abundance of caution.”
Flight NK270 was forced to return to its original destination, Montego Bay, shortly after takeoff on Saturday following a “suspected mechanical issue.”
Spirit added that the “mechanical issue did not affect the safety of the flight” and that the emergency landing instructions were given “out of an abundance of caution.”
Passengers received a $50 credit and took a new flight to Fort Lauderdale, where they arrived only 45 minutes late.
Andrene Gordon spoke about the terrible experience with the Jamaican medium the gleanercalling it a “near-death experience” that began with a “beep.”
“At first I thought, maybe it’s because it’s a new plane,” Gordon shared.
‘We were there for about 25 minutes but the plane never climbed high…’ The pilot said there was a small problem, nothing major, “so we’ll just turn back and go to the airport.”
“We never knew if we would actually hit the ground because all we saw was literally water…it was total chaos,” Gordon added.
‘The flight attendants, I know they are trained, but they are human. They were scared, everyone was scared.’
Gordon also said the $50 credit felt like “a slap in the face.”
“After that near-death experience and emotional distress, Spirit wants to offer a $50 credit to use before August of this year,” Gordon told the Gleaner.
“I feel like it’s a slap in the face because they put us through such a traumatic experience with an incompetent team. That’s so unacceptable.”
Spirit apologized to guests “for any inconvenience.”
TikTok user Tina Marie shared images from inside the plane’s cabin on Saturday.
Passengers received a $50 credit and took a new flight to Fort Lauderdale, where they arrived just 45 minutes late.
Just one day after the Spirit scare, a United Airlines flight aborted takeoff after the plane’s engine caught fire while on the taxiway at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport.
United Flight 2091 bound for Seattle with 148 passengers and five crew members on board was stopped around 2 p.m. Monday, according to the FAA.
The video showed clouds of black smoke billowing from the wing of the Airbus A320.
Ground crew and emergency personnel “immediately addressed” the problem and the plane was towed to the gate where passengers disembarked, NBC Chicago reported.
Meanwhile, all flights were suspended at New York’s JFK airport on Monday, a development attributed to the continued storms seen across much of the United States, the FAA said.
The travel chaos comes as citizens in Texas, Arkansas, Kentucky, Missouri and Tennessee were hit over the Memorial Day weekend by a series of tornadoes, high winds and flooding that have so far killed at least 21 people.
At least 6,837 in, on or outside the United States have been delayed and 516 canceled, according to FlightAware.
Memorial Day weekend kicked off what is expected to be a busy summer travel season
The U.S. Transportation Security Administration said it screened 2.95 million airline passengers on Friday, the highest number ever recorded in a single day.