Mid-air scare: United Airlines flight to Rome reverses course, descends 28,000 feet in 10 mins

A United Airlines flight en route from Newark to Rome experienced a sudden descent of 28,000 feet in just 10 minutes due to a cabin pressure issue. The Boeing 777 plane, Flight 510, was carrying 270 passengers and 14 crew members when the incident occurred. Citing FlightAware data, New York Post revealed that the flight had taken off from Newark Liberty International Airport at 8:37 p.m. local time but returned to the same airport at 12:27 a.m.

The airline addressed the situation, stating that the aircraft returned to Newark to investigate a possible loss of cabin pressure. As per the airlines' spokesperson, "the flight landed safely and there was never any loss of cabin pressure."

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) also confirmed the pressurisation issue, which led to the pilot's decision to turn the plane around. Unfortunately, during this course reversal, the aircraft rapidly descended by 28,000 feet in a span of just 10 minutes.


Passengers were later accommodated on another aircraft, and they eventually reached their destination safely, the United Airlines stated.

This incident is reminiscent of a similar occurrence in December last year when a United Airlines flight, UA1722, departing from Maui's Kahului Airport for San Francisco, experienced trouble at 2,200 feet. The Boeing 777-200 descended at a speed of 8,600 feet per minute, reaching just 775 feet above sea level before stabilising, The Independent reported.