Breaking: Terrifying Kauai Dive in Near-Ocean Southwest Raises Alarm

Updated at 2 p.m.. A very scary event has just come to light today, which was first based on a Reuters report that we followed to independently confirm. A Southwest Airlines Hawaii interisland flight narrowly avoided disaster in April, coming dangerously close to crashing into the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Kauai.

To be clear, this is not the Southwest Dutch Roll incident, which took place on another flight from Phoenix to Oakland.

The unreported incident occurred on April 11, 2024. The flight took off from Honolulu at 6:45 p.m. for what should have lasted approximately 22 minutes. However, after the incident near Kauai, the plane returned to its point of origin, Honolulu, and landed there at 8:09 p.m. Near Kauai, the plane went from an altitude of nearly 16,000 feet to an altitude of 409 feet, as FlightAware reports.

Southwest declined to provide flight details that we independently obtained because of an FAA safety monitoring program that allows pilots and others to report concerns anonymously.

This incident had not been publicly reported by Southwest. News of what happened was broadcast to Southwest pilots through internal communication last week. “The Boeing Co. 737 Max 8 jet briefly fell at an unusually high speed of more than 4,000 feet per minute before the flight crew stopped to avoid disaster.” Another report on the note stated that the captain had given responsibility to the less experienced first officer despite the bad weather. The co-pilot accidentally reduced the plane's speed, resulting in a rapid descent. An alarm from the warning system was followed by the pilot ordering an increase in thrust, which then resulted in a climb rate of 8.5,000 feet per minute.

The incident occurred during a 100-mile interisland flight from Honolulu as the plane attempted to land at Lihue Airport on Kauai. Faced with obscured visibility and unable to visually identify the runway, the flight crew reportedly chose to abort the landing and return to Oahu. That incident included a series of critical maneuvers that put passengers and crew on what is described as a breathtaking ride reminiscent of a roller coaster.

Southwest, with only five years of experience in Hawaii, is not as knowledgeable about our weather anomalies as Hawaiian Airlines, a 90-year-old company.

According to Flightaware flight data, the plane's altitude dropped significantly within seconds to just 409 feet above the ocean surface. The sudden descent was followed by an aggressive climb. A former commercial pilot quoted in the article likened the erratic flight behavior to “nosing up and down with power and almost out of control.”

The captain had assigned the first officer, the least experienced, to pilot the short journey despite extremely difficult weather conditions. The co-pilot's suggested error in handling the situation, including inappropriate thrust adjustments, triggered an automatic alarm warning of the proximity of the ocean surface. Fortunately, the captain's immediate corrective actions averted a potential disaster.

This close incident comes amid a series of alarming safety incidents in the airline industry. Southwest responded by reaffirming its commitment to safety and emphasizing continuous improvement of its safety management system. Meanwhile, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration has opened an investigation into the incident, which highlights continued airline safety and performance challenges.

This is reminiscent of the United Airlines Boeing 787 Dreamliner diving incident that occurred off the coast of Maui.

Last year's frightening incident involved United Airlines Flight 1722, a Boeing 787 from Maui to San Francisco. It’s another stark reminder of the dangers that bad weather poses to aviation. Shortly after takeoff, in the midst of a severe winter storm in Hawaii, UA 1722 experienced a sudden and drastic drop in altitude. The plane plummeted from an altitude of 2,200 feet to a dangerous altitude of 750 feet above the Pacific Ocean.

This alarming descent was captured by FlightRadar24 Pro and highlighted the extreme weather conditions of the day. Fortunately, due to strict safety protocols, all passengers and crew members were seated with their seat belts fastened, which likely prevented any injuries.

The United incident, which was not widely publicized at first, resulted in a coordinated investigation with the FAA and ALPA, resulting in additional training for the pilots involved. This episode highlights the critical importance of strict safety measures and training to ensure passenger safety in unpredictable weather conditions.

Beat of Hawaii editors encountered an eerily similar and uncomfortable incident on a Delta flight to Kauai.

Last year, editors Rob and Jeff were on a Delta flight from Seattle to Kauai. The landing, on an otherwise uneventful flight, involved an incident in which the approach was aborted. The plane appeared to be unusually low to the ground, but it was in a poor position to land on Kauai. As a result, a last minute go-around was initiated. Unfortunately, the pilot of the Delta flight never mentioned to the passengers what had happened. In a question posed to a decades-qualified Hawaiian pilot, they surmised: “I have to wonder if the massive hiring that all the airlines are doing isn't diluting the experience level…”

Ensuring flight safety in Hawaii is paramount, given the unique challenges posed by the islands' often abrupt weather conditions and our mountainous topography. As the aviation community and FAA regulators dig deeper into this latest issue, the incident highlights the critical need for strict safety protocols and robust pilot training to protect Hawaii's ever-popular air travel.

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