A Southwest Airlines flight from Albuquerque to Baltimore was forced to make an emergency landing in Tulsa on Monday after the cockpit windshield suddenly shattered while at cruising altitude. The Boeing 737-700 was approximately one hour into the three-hour flight when cracks began to form in the glass before it fractured.

Fortunately, the flight crew was not injured during the incident and promptly declared an emergency before initiating a descent to Tulsa International Airport (TUL). Images of the aircraft after it landed show that the windshield sustained severe damage, which, according to the pilots, occurred without any impact.

Southwest Flight Diverts To Tulsa After Windshield Shatters

Credit: Flightradar24

The Southwest 737-700 had reached a cruising altitude of 37,000 feet and was flying over the border of Oklahoma and Kansas when the incident occurred. As per Flightradar24 data, Southwest Flight 2665 departed Albuquerque International Sunport Airport (ABQ) at 2:04 PM local time and initiated its diversion approximately 70 minutes into the flight, which was en route to Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI).

The aircraft’s quick descent reached a rate of more than 2,500 feet per minute (FPM), and it landed safely in Tulsa around 25 minutes later. At some point during the emergency, the flight crew used the PA system to inform passengers that the windshield had “exploded” without any impact with an object, before declaring that the aircraft was making an emergency landing in Tulsa. One passenger, George Gonzalez, told KRQE News 13,

“They mentioned nothing struck the aircraft; it was just the windshield started cracking, and then it just exploded, so credit to the pilots for landing the plane and getting us down safely.”

Aircraft Has Already Left Tulsa

Credit: Shutterstock

The aircraft involved in Monday’s incident was a 19-year-old Boeing 737-700 (registration: N265WN) delivered to Southwest in February 2007. Tracking data shows the plane left Tulsa the next day, spending more than 24 hours on the ground before departing at 11:28 PM. It was flown to Chicago Midway (MDW) and landed at 12:44 AM+1 following a brief 75-minute flight.

Replacing a cockpit windshield can usually be completed with a short turnaround, although this is dependent on the extent of damage and any potential issues with the surrounding aircraft. Given the apparent lack of any impact, structural fatigue will be looked at when determining the cause of Monday’s emergency.

Data from ch-aviation shows that N265WN has accumulated over 60,000 flight hours and 36,000 flight cycles during its time with Southwest. Both the airline and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) have confirmed that the incident involved a cracked windshield, but did not elaborate further. Simple Flying has reached out to Southwest Airlines for comment, but a representative could not be reached before publishing.

How Dangerous Is Windshield Damage?

Credit: United Airlines

While the idea of a shattered windshield will understandably cause alarm for the average traveler, modern aviation engineering is specifically designed to prevent these incidents from becoming catastrophic. A commercial jet windshield is typically comprised of three distinct layers designed to work as a fail-safe in the instance that one layer is damaged.

In one of the most unusual midair incidents in recent years, a United Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 struck a high-altitude weather balloon while cruising at 36,000 feet. The impact punched a hole in the windshield and caused minor cuts to one of the pilots, prompting a swift diversion and landing.

Fortunately, no one was hurt during Monday’s incident. One of Southwest’s 737-700s was involved in another unusual incident last month, when a heads-up display (HUD) fell and incapacitated the captain. The display came loose during takeoff and struck the captain on the head, causing a concussion.