A Southwest Airlines flight was diverted to Kansas City International Airport Wednesday afternoon.
Southwest Airlines Flight 1265 from Chicago to Austin had severe turbulence.
Emergency crews were on the scene at gate 37 assessing the flight after its emergency landing.
No injuries were reported.
Nick Dunbar was a passenger onboard Southwest Flight 1265 on Tuesday. He told 41 Action News the flight started off well enough, with mild turbulence in the first 20 to 30 minutes.
Dunbar said then, "It felt like we hit a sharp turn or tilt. My butt was coming off the seat along with pretty much all of the other passengers around us, so it got high anxiety pretty quick."
The captain came over the intercom saying everything was fine and that the flight would divert to Kansas City to ensure there were no injuries and the plane was not damaged.
Dunbar emphasized, "They did a really good job of staying calm actually. They were just making sure everyone was in their seats and seatbelts were buckled."
The whole situation lasted less than a minute, but those moments were definitely scary. "It makes me a little bit more nervous about flying but at the same time you've just got to trust that they're professionals," Dunbar said.
He still plans to fly with Southwest Airlines.
Southwest released the following statement:
Southwest flight #1265 from Chicago’s Midway International Airport (MDW) to Austin–Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) experienced severe turbulence during flight. Out of an abundance of caution, the Flight Crew elected to divert to Kansas City International Airport (MCI) to conduct a post-turbulence check of the aircraft. There are no reports of injuries to any of the passengers or crew. Once the aircraft is cleared to fly, we plan to continue the flight to AUS. Safety is always our top priority at Southwest, and we appreciate the patience of our customers as we work diligently to get them on their way.
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Dia Wall can be reached at dia.wall@kshb.com.
