A United Airlines flight from San Francisco experienced a possible drone encounter before landing in San Diego early Wednesday. Fortunately, the airline conducted a thorough inspection and didn’t find any damage to the aircraft.
United Flight 1980, a Boeing 737, was headed from San Francisco International Airport to San Diego. It safely reached the airport, where all 48 passengers and six crew members disembarked without a hitch.
The flight took off at 6:53 a.m. and arrived in San Diego at 8:28 a.m. An air traffic recording surfaced, where the pilot mentioned hitting something small, described as “red” and “shiny,” while descending to about 3,000 feet.
Drone sightings have increasingly worried aviation experts in recent years. A study by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reported nearly 2,000 drone incidents close to airports in 2022 alone. These concerns are critical because, while drone collisions with commercial planes are rare, the potential risks are serious.
As of now, there haven’t been any updates from government agencies about what occurred during the flight’s descent.
Source link
Travel, California, San Francisco, Bay Area
