A Delta Air Lines jet flying from Jackson Hole to Atlanta made an emergency rapid descent and quickly dropped altitude to just 10,000 feet after suffering a decompression which resulted in a full-scale emergency response from airport authorities.
Delta flight DL927 was being operated by a 23-year-old Boeing 757 on July 13 and was three hours into the flight when the pilots quickly descended from a cruising altitude of 41,000 feet to around 10,000 feet in less than 10 minutes.
The pilots then diverted to St Louis where they landed without incident around 30 minutes after the the ‘loss of cabin pressure’ incident began. There were 148 passengers onboard and six crew members and no confirmed reports of injuries.
Emergency medical services were, however, waiting for the aircraft on arrival.
Once the plane was on the ground, Delta managed to get hold of another Boeing 757, which it sent to St Louis to pick up the stranded passengers and get them to Atlanta.
The passengers eventually made it to Atlanta six hours late, which, given the circumstances, shouldn’t be considered too bad.
For an airliner more than two decades old, the aircraft involved in this incident (Registration: N550NW) has had a remarkably problem-free life. However, records from the Aviation Herald show that back in 2018, the plane had to make an emergency diversion due to a smell of smoke in the cabin.
Despite the diversion, the plane landed without incident, and passengers were able to disembark normally.
Two years later, the plane also sustained damage at LaGuardia Airport when an Airbus A319 collided with a jetway as it was taxiing, which in turn hit the Boeing 757. Thankfully, no one was injured in this incident.
The plane was originally delivered factory-fresh to Northwest Airlines in June 2001 before becoming part of the Delta fleet following the merger of the two carriers.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Delta Air Lines told us: “The safety of our customers and people remains Delta’s most important priority. On Saturday, July 13, Delta flight 927 operating from Jackson Hole, Wyoming to Atlanta diverted to St. Louis after experiencing a pressurization issue in-flight.”
“The flight landed safely and without further incident and we apologize for the delay in their travel.”
