Not feeling safe...........

Hawaii flight reportedly falls 600 feet in seconds, barely avoiding crash

By Silas Valentino

Authorities are investigating what caused a flight from Hawaii to dive toward the ocean, coming within 400 feet of hitting the water.

The Federal Aviation Administration began investigating the Southwest Airlines flight right after the drop occurred on April 11, a spokesperson for the agency told SFGATE. No injuries were reported, and the flight returned to its departure airport, Daniel K. Inouye International in Honolulu.

Bloomberg News first reported the drop after obtaining a memo that Southwest distributed to pilots. According to the memo, pilots for Southwest Flight 2786 were attempting to land while facing inclement weather conditions. The flight was an island hopper from Honolulu to Lihue Airport on Kauai.

The captain placed a “newer” first officer in command, according to the memo, who “inadvertently” mishandled the plane’s control column, or yoke, and then cut speed, prompting the flight’s rapid descent. 

Bloomberg cites data from the flight tracking website ADS-B Exchange reporting that the Southwest flight fell 600 feet in a few seconds, from an altitude of roughly 1,000 feet to 400 feet, to narrowly miss colliding with the Pacific Ocean.

The National Transportation Safety Board has not announced if it plans to join the investigation.

Last year, the NTSB released its final report on United Airlines flight 1722, traveling to San Francisco from Maui, which plunged to 748 feet above the ocean on Dec. 18, 2022. The board determined the drop was due to a flight crew error, including “a miscommunication” with the captain.