Approximately 200 passengers aboard a Spring Airlines Japan flight from Shanghai to Tokyo experienced sheer terror when the Boeing aircraft suddenly lost more than 25,000 feet (approximately 7,600 meters) of altitude in just 10 minutes due to a mechanical failure. The scenes inside the plane were shocking. Some passengers fainted, while others began sending farewell messages to their loved ones, believing the plane was about to crash.
According to reports, including those from the New York Post, the Boeing aircraft was flying at 36,000 feet with 191 passengers and crew members when it experienced the sudden drop. It plunged to as low as 10,500 feet, causing panic throughout the cabin. Footage from the incident shows oxygen masks deployed and crew members instructing passengers on how to use them.
One passenger described hearing a loud noise followed by the immediate deployment of oxygen masks. ‘I heard a bang, and within seconds the oxygen masks fell. The flight attendant was crying and shouting at us to put them on, saying there had been a malfunction,’ he said. Another passenger added, ‘I was sleeping, and suddenly all the masks opened.’
Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism announced that the aircraft’s system detected a problem with cabin pressure during the flight, triggering an alarm. The plane made an emergency landing at Osaka’s Kansai Airport around 8:50 PM local time, with no reported injuries.