Terror on Flight 1380

Tens of thousands of feet above the earth, passengers clasped hands with strangers, prayed for a miracle and got ready to die. Moments earlier on Tuesday morning, they had been doing crossword puzzles, reading their favorite books, and curling up in their seats to watch funny movies as their Southwest Airlines flight climbed just above 30,000 feet on its way from New York to Texas. It was around 11 a.m., 20 minutes into a four-hour flight, as they flew above the clouds and waited for flight attendants to walk down the narrow aisle and hand out drinks. Then, with a deafening roar, Flight 1380 became a midair scene of chaos and terror for the 144 passengers and five crew members on board.

With no apparent warning, the plane’s left engine exploded after one of its fan blades broke off. A gust of shrapnel shattered a window, partly sucking one passenger in Row 14 headfirst into the sky resulting in an immediate death. Oxygen masks dropped down as the plane plunged thousands of feet in a mere minute. Passengers had only one thing they could do, hold tight and hope that it was all a dream. This would’ve been their last gestures if it wasn’t for Navy pilot with what they called “nerves of steel”, and her instinct that led her to make an emergency landing in Philadelphia. Without her bravery we would have lost countless others.

The passengers were mortified after this experience, and Southwest did their best to comfort them by sending all 144 passengers $5000 checks to cover all ïmmediate medical payments¨. Southwest has also been very understanding to everyone on board. They have made many speeches and have given many checks, but is this enough? The surviving passengers seem to be in good condition, though it won’t be easy to get over the grief of their fellow passenger dying.

Jennifer Riordan, a well-known leader and altruist from New Mexico, died Tuesday when a Southwest Airlines jet engine failed midair and its debris blew up a window. Riordan, age 43, was making her way back home to Albuquerque when a terrifying episode ensued about 20 minutes after her plane left New York’s LaGuardia Airport.

Riordan had dedicated her life to philanthropy, helping others in Albuquerque and the Southwest region. In her role as Vice President of Community Relations at Wells Fargo in Albuquerque, Riordan managed the volunteer service of more than 1,000 employees since 2008. In a statement, Wells Fargo called her “a well-known leader who was loved and respected.”

Her husband and two kids have continued to grieve. They lost a wonderful wife, mother, and person. By all that knew her, she was a great woman with a big heart. This could’ve happened to anyone, but it happened to her. She had so much more of a life to live, so many more people’s days she could’ve made.

Shortly after passengers pulled her back in and the plane had an emergency landing, she was taken to a Philadelphia hospital where she later died.“She died from blunt impact trauma of the head, neck and torso”, Spokesman for the Philadelphia Department of Public Health said. “Her’s was the first death from an in-flight incident in Southwest’s company history”, the airline reported.

The pilot’s voice was calm yet focused as her plane descended with 149 people on board. “Southwest 1380, we’re single engine”, Capt. Tammie Jo Shults, a former fighter pilot with the U.S. Navy, said. “We have part of the aircraft missing so we’re going to need to slow down a bit.” She asked for medical personnel to meet her aircraft on the runway. “We’ve got injured passengers.”

“Injured passengers, okay, and is your airplane physically on fire?” Asked a male voice on the other end, according to an air traffic recording.

“No, it’s not on fire, but part of it’s missing”, Shults recorded, pausing for a moment. “They said there’s a hole, and uh, someone went out.”

She landed the plane in Philadelphia. She was very brave the whole time. While all were glad to only lose one, it would’ve been better if nobody died.

By: Zoe Brodski, 2024 – World News Writer 

Photo credit: Action News