Delta Air Lines flight from Salt Lake City to Washington, DC had to be diverted to Denver after the cockpit windshield shattered mid-air. There were 198 passengers on board at the time of the incident. 

Passengers told local media that the crew told them to remain calm until they landed.

“They came on the loudspeaker saying that the windshield had shattered, and we were diverting to Denver in about 10 minutes,” Rachel Wright told KUTV.

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The crew announced the diversion about 90 minutes into the flight, after the plane reached cruising altitude, which is above 30,000 feet.

“They kept coming on saying for everyone to stay calm, to be calm, and we were calm so being told to stay calm while we were calm made us feel a little panicky,” Wright said.

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Passengers were able to see the shattered glass once the flight landed in Denver. 

“I’m really good at playing what-if? And so, my mind goes to kind of what could have happened, worst case scenario and I’m grateful,” Wright said. “It could have been really bad, it could have gone very differently.”

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Wright praised the pilots for bringing the plane down safely. She said the airline was very accommodating. 

“I’ve never been more grateful to spend an extra three hours in an airport,” Wright said.

Meanwhile, a photo of the windshield shared on social media showed the glass, though lined with cracks, didn’t fall from its frame. 

Delta gave a statement to KUTV calling it “a maintenance issue mid-flight.”

“Out of an abundance of caution, the flight crew diverted into Denver and the plane landed routinely. Our team worked quickly to accommodate customers on a new plane, and we sincerely apologize for the delay and inconvenience to their travel plans,” the airline statement said.

The passengers boarded a new flight in Denver and continued on to Washington.