NEED TO KNOW
- An American Airlines flight was forced to make an emergency landing due to a mechanical issue on Saturday, June 7, according to reports
- The jet landed safely back at Des Moines International Airport around 35 minutes after taking off
- The mechanical issue on the flight from Iowa to Chicago has not been specified at this time
An American Airlines plane heading from Iowa to Chicago was forced to make an emergency landing shortly after take off due to a mechanical issue.
Flight 449 took off towards Chicago O’Hare International Airport at around 6:05 a.m. local time on Saturday, June 7, only to turn back to Des Moines International Airport around 30 minutes into the journey, Des Moines Register and local outlet KCCI reported.
The pilot decided to make an emergency landing after encountering an unspecified mechanical issue, Des Moines airport communications manager Sarah Hoodjer told Des Moines Register.
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AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall
The plane, which carried 119 passengers, landed back in Des Moines at 6:40 a.m. Passengers were safely evacuated with no injuries suffered, the outlet reported, citing Hoodjer.
“Crews are investigating what caused the sudden landing,” she told Des Moines Register.
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According to the outlet, the mechanical issue was looked over after the plane returned to Des Moines International Airport and was expected to take off once the issue was fixed.
Some of the passengers waited to get back on the plane after the issue was fixed, while others decided to rebook with another American Airlines flight to Chicago.
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The airline was scheduled to make two more flights to Chicago on Saturday. One was set to depart at 150 pm and the other at 5:56 p.m. local time, per Des Moines Register.
PEOPLE has reached out to the Des Moines airport communications manager for comment.