Southwest Shares Fall After FAA Launches Investigation Into Engine Cover Ripping Off Its Boeing Jet
Southwest Airlines shares are down around 1% in premarket trading in New York after the Federal Aviation Administration announced on Sunday that it was investigating a Houston-bound Boeing plane operated by the low-budget carrier that lost an engine cover and struck the wing flap during takeoff.
On Sunday morning, Flight 3695, a Boeing 737-800 aircraft operated by Southwest, was taking off from Denver International Airport to Houston when passengers heard a loud bang and recorded the moment the engine cowling ripped off the plane.
Scary moments for passengers on a Southwest flight from Denver to Houston when the engine cover ripped off during flight , forcing the plane to return to Denver Sunday morning. pic.twitter.com/BBpCBXpTsl
— Sam Sweeney (@SweeneyABC) April 7, 2024
Part of the engine cover "peeled off within the first 10 minutes" of the flight, Lisa C. told ABC News, adding, "We all felt kind of a bump, a jolt, and I looked out the window because I love window seats, and there it was."
The FAA told ABC News and other corporate media outlets that it's investigating the incident involving Flight 3695.
Another passenger told ABC: "People in the exit row across from me started yelling up to the flight attendants and showed them the damage."
Southwest Airlines told Business Insider in a statement that Flight 3695 experienced a "mechanical issue," and its maintenance team was inspecting the aircraft Sunday afternoon.
"Our Customers will arrive at Houston Hobby on another aircraft, approximately three hours behind schedule," the budget carrier said in a statement.
Not a week goes by that some major incident involving Boeing planes, whether it is a tire falling off, runway excursions, engine fires, hydraulic leaks, pilot seats flailing around the cockpit and slamming the yoke, and or external panels ripping off.
We continue to ask whether these mid-air mishaps are sabotage or just shoddy maintenance.
To avoid Boeing jets while traveling, use the online travel booking website Kayak's plane filter.