Terrifying plunge: Southwest flight drops 300 feet to avoid possible collision near Burbank

Two flight attendants were injured and several passengers left shaken after a Southwest Airlines flight from Southern California to Las Vegas made a dramatic midair drop shortly after takeoff on Friday.

The aircraft plunged roughly 91.44 metres (300 feet) in just 36 seconds following an onboard alert about a nearby plane, according to flight data.

Southwest Flight 1496 had departed from Hollywood Burbank Airport when its collision warning system triggered, prompting the pilots to first climb and then dive as a precaution. The flight continued to Las Vegas and landed without further incident.

Passengers took to social media to describe the terrifying episode. Comedian Jimmy Dore, who was on board, wrote on X, “The pilot had to dive aggressively to avoid midair collision over Burbank airport. Myself and plenty of people flew out of their seats and bumped heads on the ceiling.”

Another passenger said people were “screaming as the plane dove,” while one flight attendant was seen holding an ice pack to her head after sustaining an injury.

Shaken by the incident, several passengers said they could barely understand the pilot's announcements following the event. However, Dore posted that the pilot confirmed his collision warning had activated and that he had taken emergency action to avoid another aircraft.

Stef Zamorano, who was travelling to Las Vegas with her husband, described seeing a woman launched from her seat as the plane lurched violently. “She was verbalising how we all felt, saying, ‘I want to get off this plane. I want to be on the ground,’” Zamorano told The Associated Press.

Southwest Airlines confirmed that no passenger injuries were reported immediately, but said two crew members were being treated. “Southwest is engaged with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to further understand the circumstances,” the airline said in a statement.

The FAA confirmed that the plane responded to an alert about another aircraft nearby and is now investigating the incident.

Flight data from tracking service FlightAware indicates the aircraft may have shared airspace near Burbank with a Hawker Hunter Mk. 58, a British-built fighter jet owned by Hawker Hunter Aviation, a defence contractor based in the UK.

The company has not yet responded to requests for comment. Meanwhile, Burbank Airport’s operations department reported no record of the Southwest flight plunging in their airspace.

— With inputs from agencies