Southwest Plane Makes Sudden Plunge to Prevent Midair Crash, Passengers Report

Passengers on a Southwest Airlines jet from Burbank to Las Vegas say their pilot had to “aggressively” dive to avoid a midair collision with another plane shortly after takeoff on Friday afternoon.

According to flight records, Southwest Flight 1496 departed the Hollywood Burbank Airport at 11:58 a.m. The airline later stated that its crew responded to traffic alerts issued onboard, but did not confirm reasons for the sudden plummet.

“The Crew of Southwest Flight 1496 responded to two onboard traffic alerts Friday afternoon while climbing out of Burbank, Cal., requiring them to climb and descend to comply with the alerts,” stated Southwest Airlines. “Southwest is engaged with the Federal Aviation Administration to further understand the circumstances. No injuries were immediately reported by Customers, but two Flight Attendants are being treated for injuries. We appreciate the professionalism of our Flight Crew and Flight Attendants in responding to this event.”

Among the passengers was stand-up comedian Jimmy Dore, who wrote in an X post that he and others “flew out of their seats” during the sudden maneuver, with some purportedly hitting their heads on the ceiling.

FlightAware shows SW 1496 dipped about 300 feet in elevation at 12:03 p.m.

“Pilot said his collision warning went off & he needed to avoid plane coming at us. Wow,” Dore wrote. “A flight attendant needed medical attention.”

Southwest Airlines said the flight continued to Las Vegas, “where it landed uneventfully.”

local affiliate KTLA has reached out to the FAA for comment.

Dore’s executive producer, Stef Zamorano, posted a brief video on X where she first described it as “crazy turbulence,” before Dore chimes in and explained what passengers were told.

Another X user named Steve U. said he was also a passenger on Southwest flight #1496 and claimed the plane dove thousands of feet to avoid another aircraft. “People were screaming as the plane dove. A flight attendant is being looked at right now with an ice pack on her head.”

Nidia Becerra, Luis Zuniga and Marc Sternfield contributed to this report.