Passengers of the Southwest flight told how they rescued a woman who pulled out the porthole
'21.04.2018'
Source: Daily News
The left engine of the Southwest Airlines aircraft operating flight # XXUMX from New York to Dallas, exploded in the air at an altitude of about 10 thousand meters, its fragments damaged the body of the aircraft, which led to the depressurization of the cabin. Shrapnel from the explosion smashed the window - and the woman sitting next to it - Jennifer Riordan - was partially pulled out into the street by the air stream, but other passengers managed to drag her back into the cabin. She later died from her injuries, and seven more passengers were injured in the incident. The plane made a safe emergency landing at the Philadelphia airport, to the delight of passengers who praised the pilot's skill.
Eyewitnesses of the incident told how the rescue of a woman took place and about the heroism of other passengers, writes Daily News.
A passenger sitting in the 14-row next to Jennifer Riordan, who pulled out of the window of the plane, grabbed the belt and tried to return the woman back to the plane.
“Me and the little girl sitting next to me tried to pull her back, but we couldn't. We didn't have enough strength. All we could do was stay calm, because if we hadn't done this, there would have been even greater panic on the plane, ”said passenger Holly McKay.
Broken fan blades smashed a window next to Riordan, causing her to be dragged into the hole. Mackay and the little girl sitting between her and the injured woman were in the center of chaos.
“There was a big explosion, we were confused for a second. Then they felt cold air and heard a sucking sound. At this point, we made a very tough decision. It was a great collaboration between everyone who tried to get Jennifer back to safety while keeping everyone safe, ”McKay said.
Despite common efforts, Riordan, a mother of two and vice president of public relations at a bank Wells Fargo, died from his injuries.
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FFA) has ordered an emergency inspection of all types of aircraft’s jet engines after Southwest Airlines aircraft one of the engines failed. Previously, the cause of the incident was called “metal fatigue”.
During 30 days, FFA experts will check the CMFM56-7B engines, the same engine type was installed on the injured aircraft. Similar engines are installed on 352 aircraft in the USA and 681 around the world.
Aircraft Boeing-737-700 flew the 1380 flight of the company Southwest Airlines from LaGuardia New York Airport to Dallas with 144 passengers and 5 crew members on board. The explosion of the engine on the left side damaged the wing, fuselage and windows of the aircraft. The plane managed to land.
At the helm was 56-year-old Tammy Joe Schulz. A woman with 1985, she served in the US Navy and was one of the first women to be entrusted with the management of a fighter F / A-18 Hornet. In 1993, she retired with the rank of captain of the third rank and has since been a pilot in the company. Southwest Airlines. Her husband is also a pilot; two children, a son and a daughter, are raised in a family.
