FAA investigating Southwest flight that came close to crashing into the ocean

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is investigating a Southwest Airlines flight that plunged toward the ocean off the coast of a Hawaii island.

The plunge happened on April 11 on Southwest Flight 2766 but only was reported after Bloomberg reported that Southwest sent a memo to its pilots about the incident.

According to Bloomberg, the plane dropped at a rate of more than 4,000 feet per minute before the flight crew pulled up to avoid crashing into the water. No one was injured, and the plane returned to Honolulu, its departure airport.

The plane dropped from an altitude of roughly 1,000 feet to 400 feet above the ocean in just a few seconds, Bloomberg reported.

The FAA said in a statement to The Hill that it is “investigating this incident. It occurred on April 11.”

Southwest said in an emailed statement that nothing is more important than safety.

“Through out robust Safety Management System, the event was addressed appropriately and we always strive for continuous improvement,” the company said.

The flight was an island-hopping flight from Honolulu to Lihue Airport on Kauai. Bloomberg reported that the pilots decided to abort a landing there in bad weather and the plane returned to Honolulu.

Updated at 4:53 pm.