Pilot announces mid-air he's 'unqualified' to land: Passengers left stunned by what happened next
A passenger on an Alaska Airlines flight to Jackson Hole shared their experience of a surprise diversion due to the pilot's lack of qualification to land at the airport. SkyWest Airlines later clarified that the issue stemmed from a "paperwork error," and a more qualified pilot completed the flight after a delay.
A recent flight from Portland to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, took an unexpected turn when people abroad the Alaska Airlines were informed mid-flight that everything wasn¡¯t as smooth as it seemed. Just as the plane prepared for landing on August 8th, the pilot made a shocking announcement over the intercom: he wasn't qualified to land the plane at their destination, leaving the entire cabin stunned.
A passenger took to Reddit to explain that the pilot suddenly informed everyone, "Hey, I'm really sorry folks but due to me not having the proper qualification to land in Jackson Hole, we need to divert to Salt Lake City Utah. We'll keep you posted on the next steps."
After landing in Salt Lake City, the crew apologised again but provided little information. Passengers waited on the tarmac for 1.5 hours until the pilot disembarked
"Then a new pilot from Salt Lake City got on the plane and we flew into Jackson," the passenger writes.
Something VERY weird happened on our Alaska flight yesterday: our pilot was unqualified to land??
byu/babecityrecords inAlaskaAirlines
Eventually, the flight continued to Jackson Hole, albeit with one of the bumpiest landings the passenger had ever experienced.
SkyWest Airlines, which operates the daily Alaska Airlines Flight 3491 from San Francisco to Jackson Hole, later clarified that the diversion was caused by a "paperwork error."
Credit: Unsplash
A representative told Cowboy State Daily, "[Flight 3491] landed for a short time in Salt Lake City to correct a paperwork error related to the flight crew. The flight continued to Jackson Hole after a delay while a new pilot was secured to operate the flight. All pilots involved were qualified to fly and land the aircraft; the flight diverted from Jackson Hole due to an internal administrative error and out of abundance of caution."
Pilots commenting on the Reddit post suggested that SkyWest may have dispatched a pilot who had sufficient experience with the ERJ 175 aircraft but could only land in Jackson Hole under favorable weather conditions.
Weather reports from August 8th indicated isolated storm cells near the Jackson area, which could have prompted the pilot to err on the side of caution and allow a more qualified pilot to handle the landing.
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Srishti B Dutta brings you everything from rags-to-riches tales and inspiring student success stories to those "No way, this can't be real!" moments. Whether it's intriguing, heartwarming, or just plain quirky, she's got it covered.
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