Summary
- LAX issued a brief ground stop after a Southwest Airlines plane reported a hydraulic issue and diverted to the airport.
- The aircraft, scheduled to land in Burbank, safely landed at LAX with fire trucks on the scene.
- Southwest worked with passengers to quickly get them to their final destinations while the plane undergoes maintenance.
Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) issued a brief ground stop on Friday following a Southwest Airlines plane reporting mechanical problems. The Federal Aviation Administration has reportedly confirmed that the aircraft suffered a hydraulic issue.
Video from the bottom captured the Boeing 737-700 sitting on the taxiway surrounded by fire trucks responding to the scene. Southwest said it has worked with its passengers to assist them quickly reach their final destinations.
Diversion to Los Angeles
Based on the Each day Mail, the aircraft landed safely at LAX, however the airport issued the bottom stop after becoming aware of the mechanical issues. The plane, N960WN, was operating WN1379 and originated at Sacramento International Airport (SMF). The flight was scheduled to reach at Bob Hope Airport (BUR) in nearby Burbank, but the difficulty reportedly prompted pilots to divert to LAX.
Photo: F Armstrong Photography/Shutterstock
Data from Flightradar24.com indicates that N960WN departed SMF on time at 10:31. It was scheduled to reach at BUR at 11:28, but in response to the Each day Mail, the flight was diverted to LAX just after 11:20. At 11:35, the plane landed safely at LAX. FlightAware reports that the aircraft flew at a cruising altitude of 31,000 feet and filed a speed of 519mph. An LAX spokesperson reportedly confirmed that the bottom stop was lifted shortly after N460WN had landed safely.
Southwest confirmed the incident in an announcement to the Each day Mail.
“Flight 1397 from Sacramento to Burbank diverted to LAX this afternoon due to a possible mechanical issue with the aircraft. The aircraft landed safely, and we’re working with our Customers to get them to their destinations as quickly as possible. The unique aircraft is out of service and can undergo a maintenance review.”
Footage posted to social media shows the aircraft surrounded by emergency first responders.
Multiple legs
Based on FlightAware data, the actual operation of WN1397 on Friday consisted of six legs over your complete day, starting at SMF and ending at Denver International Airport. It is a typical every day flight schedule of Southwest’s aircraft because the airline is understood to operate on a point-to-point network relatively than the normal hub and spoke system that US legacy carriers operate. Some Southwest flights utilize one aircraft to perform every leg, whereas others have a few aircraft to perform the legs throughout the day.
It seems that Southwest deployed one other aircraft to proceed the flight to Burbank. N7747C, one other 737-700, departed LAX at 14:27 and landed 10 minutes later at BUR, in response to Flightradar24.com. Although delayed, WN1397 was continued, with N7747C picking up the following leg of the flight to Chicago Midway Airport.
Repairing the aircraft
While Southwest indicated that N960WN was taken out of service to undergo maintenance, the aircraft will soon be back within the sky. The aircraft is tentatively scheduled to operate 4 flights on Sunday, with the primary being WN650 from LAX to Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. The plane will then operate as WN103 to Denver, Fresno, and Las Vegas.
N960WN is a 12-year-old 737-700 with nearly 23,000 flight cycles, in response to ch-aviation. Its average every day utilization is 8 hours and 49 minutes.