Last June 30, an unexpected cabin pressure loss sent a Japan Airlines flight plummeting nearly 26,000 feet. When the plane dropped, Shanghai-bound passengers to Tokyo grabbed breath masks for fear they would crash past our. Some wrote goodbye letters in mid-air.
The Boeing 737 made a safe landing in Osaka after its pilot diverted it. There were no injuries reported. The scare comes as part of other recent global incidents involving Boeing planes, including Air India’s mid-air plunge and earlier deadly accidents involving the 737 series.
When Japan Airlines’ Boeing 737 nose-dived more than 26,000 feet in mid-air, a flight from Shanghai to Tokyo became a horrifying experience. Japan Airlines’ low-cost partner Spring Japan’s flight JL8696, carrying 191 passengers and crew, took off from Shanghai Pudong Airport on Monday, June 30.
Until 6:53 PM local time, all seemed normal. Within ten minutes, the plane lowered itself from 36,000 feet to barely below 10,500 feet as there was a sudden loss of cabin pressure. Oxygen masks dropped down from panels overhead. Individuals hastened to don them.
The Associated Press was told by a traveller, “I heard a muffled boom, and the next thing I knew, oxygen masks fell from the ceiling. A flight attendant wept and screamed at us every day to put on our masks and told us there was a malfunction.” Another reported to the AP waking up to see masks falling and feeling on the “brink of tears”
When the cabin travellers can be seen clenching their masks tightly. Some people clutched their seats. Some people seemed stunned and did not move. People wrote goodbye letters carefully. When the aircraft was descending, one passenger carefully revealed that they had made out their will. They put down bank PINs and insurance details.
Later on, the issue was confirmed to have resulted from the pressurisation system of the aircraft by Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism.
The pilot landed the plane safely at 8:50 PM after making an emergency declaration and steering the plane toward Kansai International Airport in Osaka.
There were no injuries reported. They were compensated 15,000 yen each for transportation, and they spent the night in hotels. Japan Airlines has not given an official statement as of yet
This close call contributes to the worrisome reports about Boeing’s 737 fleet. In 2022, 179 individuals died in a crash of Jeju Air 737-800 in South Korea. A China Eastern Airlines 637 crashed in March 2022, killing all 132 aboard. This June, Air India had its terror in India.