Details have emerged concerning a United Airlines flight from December, in which the plane dropped 800 feet above the Pacific Ocean.
According to newly reported data, 71 seconds after United Airlines (UAL) Flight 1722 took off from Kahului Airport in Maui, the flight dropped from 2,200 feet to 775 feet, while en route to San Francisco.
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The incident happened on December 18, as reported by NBC News. While the plane was dipping at nearly 8,600 feet per minute, the flight was able to recover and return to an altitude of 2,350 feet in less than a minute.
Weather conditions in Hawaii were particularly harsh at the time of the take-off, as National Weather Service office in Honolulu shows that on December 18 Maui was subject to flash flood warnings, high surf and gale warnings.
After recovering from the drop, the flight landed at San Francisco at 9:03 p.m. local time, and the pilots filed a safety report. Following an investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration and the Air Line Pilots Association, the pilots consented to receive additional training.
The pilots have 25,000 hours of flying experience between them, are according to the United fully cooperated with the investigation. United otherwise declined to provide further information about the incident.
"Safety remains our highest priority,” the airline said in a statement.
