A cross-country United Airlines flight was diverted Sunday because the Boeing jet had a cracked windshield, the Federal Aviation Administration said.
United Airlines Flight 1627 had been heading from Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas, Nevada, to Dulles International Airport in Washington, DC, on Sunday when it made a sharp turn for an unexpected stop, as seen on its path tracked by Flight Aware.
It “landed safely at Denver International Airport in Colorado … after diverting due to a cracked windshield,” the FAA said.
United confirmed the diversion, telling The Post in a statement that it was due to a “maintenance issue.”
There were 166 passengers on the Boeing 737-800 jet at the time, along with seven crew members.
“After safely landing, customers deplaned normally and a plane change occurred,” United said.
“The flight then departed Denver to Dulles,” the airline said, with Flight Aware showing it landed more than four and a half hours late.
Both Denver and Dulles are among United’s eight US hubs, according to its website.
The fiasco comes days after United CEO Scott Kirby lashed out at Boeing after the carrier’s fleet of MAX 9 aircraft was grounded following the terrifying Alaska Airlines door blowout.
“I think the MAX 9 grounding is probably the straw that broke the camel’s back for us,” Kirby said in an interview last week.
Kirby lamented the fact that he envisions a five-year delay — which he calls a “best case” scenario — for the rollout of the 737 MAX 10, the latest version of the plane that has yet to be certified by the FAA.
“We’re going to at least build a plan that doesn’t have the MAX 10 in it.”
Kirby later said United would not cancel the jets, just remove them from internal plans.
United’s fleet includes 79 of the 737 MAX 9 aircraft — the most of any carrier.
