On a Delta flight from Salt Lake City, Utah, to Portland, Oregon, a pressurization issue led to multiple passengers experiencing bleeding eardrums, headaches, and nosebleeds. The pilot conducted an emergency landing, and now the airline is being investigated by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
The incident took place on Sunday, September 15th. When travelling from Salt Lake City to Portland, the pilot of the Boeing 737-900ER aircraft soon noticed an issue with the plane’s pressurisation. The flight log shows that he decided to act immediately and make an emergency landing in Salt Lake City.
@kati.reed28 Delta Airlines passengers were left with burst eardrums and bleeding noses after their flight suddenly lost pressure at 10,000 feet and plummeted on Tuesday. Passengers aboard a flight from Salt Lake City, Utah, to Portland, Oregon, felt the cabin lose pressure before the plane rapidly descended, according to KSL. Over the course of four and a half minutes, the plane descended from 33,975 feet to 25,075 feet, falling roughly 33 feet per second. The Boeing 737-900 aircraft with 140 passengers had to make an emergency landing in Salt Lake City because of pressurization issues, Delta Airlines wrote in a statement. #delta #deltaairlines #boeing #saltlakecity #utah #portland #oregon #planetok #news #tiktok #foryoupage #foryou #fyp #fyppppppppppppppppppppppp ♬ original sound – Kati Reed
However, despite the swift decision, several passengers were left harmed by the incident. While the plane was decreasing in altitude over the Great Salt Lake, multiple people were having headaches and nosebleeds, while some even presented bleeding eardrums.
In a statement to television station KSL, one of the passengers, Jaci Purser, reported bleeding eardrums during the landing. Another traveller, Caryn Allen, said they weren’t given a reason for the emergency landing, and no oxygen masks were deployed.
“I looked over at my husband, and he had both of his hands over his ears, you know, kind of leaning forward. I looked about a row behind me, over on the other side of the aisle, and there was a gentleman that clearly had a very bad bloody nose, and people were trying to help him”, Caryn Allen stated.
All in all, 10 out of 140 passengers needed medical attention once the plane touched down. Anyone bleeding was urged to go to the hospital for further examination, with Delta Air Lines offering to cover the transportation costs.
“We sincerely apologise to our customers for their experience on flight 1203 on Sept. 15,” Delta said in a statement. “The flight crew followed procedures to return to SLC where our teams on the ground supported our customers with their immediate needs.”
According to the airline, the plane was put out of service on Sunday. It was allowed back on Monday, as technicians were able to identify and resolve the issue, which left the plane unable to pressurize above 10,000 feet. In such a scenario, pilots are trained to descend below 12,000 feet, where extra oxygen isn’t required.
The FAA is now investigating the matter.
