Photo caption: A Southwest Boeing 737 with its engine cowling in tact
A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-800 had to turn back shortly after takeoff early Sunday morning when an engine cowling came off and hit a wing flap and make an emergency landing.
The aircraft left the gate one minute early at 7:39 a.m. local time and took off at 7:49 a.m. It landed back in Denver at 8:14 a.m. and was at the terminal at 8:39 a.m. after being towed to the gate.
Flight 3695 was taxing down the runway at Denver International Airport for a flight to Houston when part of the engine’s protective cover peeled back. Once airborne, the cover fell off struck a wing flap.
“Let’s go ahead and declare an emergency for Southwest 3695 and we’d like an immediate return,” a member of the flight crew told air-traffic control, according to radio transmissions that are publicly available. “We’ve got a piece of the engine cowling hanging off.”
The plane had 135 passengers and five crew members. No injuries were reported.
The Federal Aviation Administration issued a statement on the incident saying it would launch an investigation.
Southwest said that the 135 passengers boarded a new aircraft, also a Boeing 737-800, and that aircraft left the gate at 10:41 a.m. The new takeoff time was 10:54 a.m.
The flight landed in Houston at 1:58 p.m. local time and was at the gate at 2:09 p.m. after two hours and 28 minutes in the air and almost three hours behind schedule.
In a statement, the airline issued a formal apology to its passengers for the incident.
“We apologize for the inconvenience of their delay, but place our highest priority on ultimate safety for our customers and employees,” the statement said.
(Photo: Accura Media Group)
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