United flight from San Francisco to Boston diverted due to damage to one of its wings

Seattle Times ^ | 2.20.2024 | Beatrice Dupuy

[libh8er]

NEW YORK (AP) — A United Airlines cross-country flight was cut short and the jetliner landed in Denver after one of its wings was damaged.

A passenger on the San Francisco-to-Boston flight Monday said he had just put in earbuds and started to doze off when he felt the plane shaking.

“All of a sudden I heard this violent vibration like I had never heard before,” Kevin Clarke said in an interview Tuesday.

Clarke said one of the pilots walked down the aisle of the main cabin, then returned to the cockpit and announced that the plane had minor damage to its right wing and the flight would be diverted to Denver.

Clarke opened his window shade and took video of the damage that was later broadcast on Boston 25 News. The 67-year-old, a ski-race announcer from Maine, was comforted that the pilot believed the plane was good enough to fly, but he began having doubts when the jet hit turbulence.

I was just going to pray that we made it to the other side of the turbulence,” he said.

United said the Boeing 757-200 carrying 165 passengers landed in Denver to “address an issue with the slat” on one of its wings. Slats are moveable panels on the front or leading edge of the wing and are used during takeoffs and landings. Chicago-based United did not say what caused the damage which left pieces of the slat torn away.

The Federal Aviation Administration said Tuesday that it is investigating the incident.

[Noumenon]

Fly Affirmative Action Airlines! Your pronouns will be respected!

[libh8er]

[Uncle Miltie]

https://www.boeing.com/sustainability/diversity-and-inclusion#Commitment

[packagingguy]

Our strength is our perversity!

[ProtectOurFreedom]

It looks like a big strike!

[Bullish]

If they want diversity so much in the cockpits just imagine how bad their maintanece dept must be.

[VanShuyten]

Goose, or...

UFO!?!?

[Noumenon]

Maintenance is a holdover from the cis-heteronormative patriarchal matrix. Smash the patriarchy!

[ALPAPilot]

That is very strange - having a slat malfunction at altitude ??. The slats are retracted no later that 3000 feet. Once retracted, there isn’t much at altitude to mess with them - wierd.

[BenLurkin]

[Red Badger]

[SaveFerris]

Finally. We have our answer.

Though, given the way United Airlines is going, perhaps....

Don't look out on the wing, Captain!!!

[libh8er]

“ The slats are retracted no later that 3000 feet.”

That’s a good point. Are slats serviceable parts .. as in do they have to be replaced after a certain number of miles… especially if they were subject to bird strikes in the past ?

[SaveFerris]

[Clarke opened his window shade]

Don’t do that, lest you wind up scared like Bill Shatner!

[verum ago]

That is very strange - having a slat malfunction at altitude ??. The slats are retracted no later that 3000 feet. Once retracted, there isn’t much at altitude to mess with them - wierd.

Other outlets are reporting it as a birdstrike. Probably suffered damage at lower altitude, then the thing started flaking apart once at full cruise speed...

[EEGator]

If you see the pilot walking down the aisle…

[digger48]

Looks like plywood

Could a bird do that on takeoff?

[EEGator]

Goose died in 86 during ejection…

[digger48]

You answered my question

Thanks