‘Burning smells, noises’: Passengers describe flight that dropped 15,000 feet after leaving CLT
Passengers on a flight that left from Charlotte Douglas experienced scary moments as their plane dropped 15,000 feet in a matter of minutes.
The flight took off from Charlotte Douglas on Thursday afternoon and was heading to Gainesville, Florida. It was operated by Piedmont Airlines, a subsidiary of American Airlines.
American Airlines said the pilot received a notification about a pressurization issue and immediately descended to a lower altitude until the plane could land safely.
The flight’s path shown on FlightAware shows it dropping in South Georgia before landing in Gainesville, Florida. After traveling at a steady altitude of 30,000, it dropped to 15,000 feet in just three minutes. The flight had 48 passengers and three crew members.
Passengers described the experience to Channel 9′s Erika Jackson.
Juliana Fernandes said she and her family were traveling from D.C. to Gainesville on Thursday with a layover in Charlotte. She didn’t really understand what was happening.
“I’m an optimist,” Fernandes said. “I didn’t think much about this.”
She added that halfway through the flight, oxygen masks were dropped for passengers to wear.
“I think we stayed for about 20 minutes without knowing what was going on,” Fernandes said. “Actually, we didn’t get any information.”
Fernandes’ co-worker Harrison called the event traumatic. Those in the back of the plane felt the most effect of the drop, Fernandes said.
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“They said that they smelled burning smells, noises and ear popping.” she said. “And things like that. But they were in the back of the airplane.”
No one was hurt, according to American Airlines. Piedmont Airlines says the pilot learned the plan had a pressurization issue and quickly descended to a lower altitude. A emergency upon landing was not declared.
Fernandes said that the experience will change her outlook on future flights.
“If I’m on a flight and the masks deploy again, automatically, I’m going to put it on my face,” she said.
Passengers told Jackson the crew on board kept everyone calm and the one flight attendant made sure everyone had their masks on.
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