The airline said that a “possible mechanical issue” during the flight meant that a United Airlines flight with almost 200 people on board had to make an emergency landing at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey.
Flight tracking shows that the Boeing 757 took off from Newark Airport just before 6 a.m. and was headed toward Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas.
Another person from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey told WPIX-TV that the pilots turned the plane around and flew back to Newark after about an hour.
Fox News Digital was told by an airline representative that there were 176 passengers and six team members on board the flight when there was a possible mechanical problem.
“United flight 1544 to Las Vegas returned to Newark Liberty International Airport to address a possible mechanical issue,” the person said. “The flight landed safely, and all passengers deplaned normally at the gate.”
A United representative said that passengers were given a different plane to continue their trip to Las Vegas.
The airline didn’t say right away what kind of mechanical problem they thought had happened.
The emergency landing is the latest in a string of recent bad events involving U.S. air travel that is cause for worry.
Delta Air Lines said that a “haze” filled the cabin of a flight on Monday morning, so it had to turn around and go back to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. After landing safely, everyone got off the plane, and no injuries were recorded.
Two people were killed when two small planes crashed in the air at an Arizona rural airport last week.
Due to a “security concern,” an American Airlines flight from New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport to New Delhi, India was diverted and accompanied by Italian fighter jets on Sunday. The flight had almost 200 people on board and 15 crew members. The airline didn’t say why they were worried about security.
On the way to land at Canada’s Toronto Pearson Airport earlier this month, a Delta Air Lines jet caught fire and flipped over. Everyone on board made it through the experience alive, though some were hurt.
Last month, 67 people died when an American Airlines plane and a military Black Hawk chopper crashed near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. After less than 48 hours, a medical ambulance flight crashed in Philadelphia, killing seven.
