American Airlines passengers shown bracing for impact in emergency landing
Passengers on the American Airlines flight were uninjured in the hard landing.
— -- Passengers on an American Airlines flight suffered some tense moments on Thursday after they were instructed to brace for impact as their plane made an emergency landing due to mechanical issues. The entire frightening incident was recorded by a passenger.
In a video from passenger Steve Ramsthel, a flight attendant tells passengers, “you will need to be seated in a brace position for landing.”
The plane, operated by Mesa Airlines, was traveling from Phoenix and ultimately landed safely at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.
Ramsthel told Phoenix ABC affiliate KNXV that he could smell smoke in the plane.
"There were some people crossing themselves, but I thought the adrenaline was high and everybody just cooperated," Ramsthel said. "It was pretty amazing to be honest with you."
Ramsthel, who is a certified pilot, said passengers remained calm and the captain and crew handled the situation very well.
American Airlines later released a statement, saying, “A flight made an emergency landing on January 17 due to mechanical issues stemming from a broken fan. There were no reported injuries.”
The plane has been inspected, and is now back in service, according to the airline.