DENVER / LOS ANGELES / LONDON (IT BOLTWISE) – A United Airlines flight from Denver to Los Angeles had to be diverted after the pilot reported the plane was hit by space debris at 36,000 feet. The incident resulted in visible damage to the cockpit window and a minor injury to the pilot.
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An unusual incident occurred on a United Airlines flight when the pilot reported that the plane was hit by space debris. Flight 1093 was en route from Denver to Los Angeles when the incident occurred at 36,000 feet. The pilot decided to divert to Salt Lake City, where the plane landed safely. There were 140 passengers on board, all of whom were uninjured.
The Boeing 737 was visibly damaged, particularly the cockpit window, which was cracked. The pilot suffered a minor injury to his arm. Photos shared online show the damage and small fragments scattered around the cockpit. A well-known aviation social media account was the first to spread the pilot’s theory that orbital debris was the cause.
Space junk consists of defective objects orbiting the Earth, such as old satellites or rocket parts. These objects can travel at speeds of several thousand kilometers per hour and pose a threat to spacecraft and satellites. Experts often compare them to “pebbles hitting a car window,” but at extreme speeds and altitudes.
Although the photos show clear physical damage, aviation experts are treating the statement with caution. The Federal Aviation Administration has previously described the chance of injury from falling space debris as less than one in a trillion. One aviation commentator expressed doubts about the pilot’s claim to have seen the object, as at that altitude it would only appear as a dark, fast-moving speck.
The Boeing 737 crew performed a controlled descent and landed safely in Salt Lake City. The passengers were later flown to Los Angeles on a replacement plane. While no passengers were injured, investigators are investigating what may have caused the sudden hit. Whether it was actually a piece of orbital junk or another flying object remains uncertain.
The incident stands as one of the strangest and rarest events in commercial aviation; a possible encounter with the growing problem of debris in Earth’s orbit. The investigation will show whether the pilot’s theory is correct or whether another explanation needs to be found.
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