A Virgin Atlantic flight bound for San Francisco was forced to reroute after its windshield broke in mid-air at an altitude of 40,000 feet. The Boeing 787-9 plane suffered “damage to the outer layer of the cockpit windshield” about three hours after taking off from London’s Heathrow Airport, the airline said.
Boeing 787-9 plane rerouted after windshield breaks during flight
According to the NY Post, the incident happened when the plane turned around somewhere between Greenland and Iceland. The temperature outside was reportedly minus 58 degrees. The plane was forced to turn back and passengers flew to San Francisco the next day. No one was injured at the time of the incident.
It’s not clear what caused the damage on the May 27 flight, but a Virgin Atlantic spokesman said the “multi-layer” glass on the plane, VS41, was “partially fractured.” The spokesman added that the glass was a “non-structural wear layer.”
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Following the mid-air collision, the airline assured the Evening Standard that “at no time was the safety of the aircraft, customers or cabin crew at risk.” The statement continued, “The captain made the decision to return to Heathrow, where replacement parts and tools were available to resolve the issue and avoid further disruption to customers and schedules.”
“We have always implemented safety measures that go well beyond industry safety standards and the aircraft was back in service within 24 hours of the incident. We apologise to affected customers for any travel delays,” the airline added.
The crash comes in a series of mishaps for Boeing. On Wednesday, a Southwest Airlines Boeing 787 triggered an altitude warning while flying less than 500 feet above a residential neighborhood as it landed in Oklahoma City. A similar incident occurred a month ago when another Southwest Airlines plane bound for Hawaii descended to just 400 feet over the Pacific Ocean.