--- title: "Passengers Alarmed to See Plane Wing Falling Apart in Mid-Air" description: "Passengers on a cross-country flight captured footage of a plane wing breaking apart in mid-air and on the runway." date: "2024-02-21" modified: "2024-02-21" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/plane-wing-breaking-footage" categories: - "Future Society" tags: - "airplanes" - "boeing" - "planes" - "the digest" --- # Passengers Alarmed to See Plane Wing Falling Apart in Mid-Air ![Passengers on a cross-country flight captured footage of a plane wing breaking apart in mid-air and on the runway.]() *\Image: octopus\_hug via Reddit\* ## Hashtag Receipts Another day, another freak incident on a plane — and this time, there's footage. As [*NBC 10 Boston* reports](), passenger Kevin Clarke said he was "kind of sleepy" when the pilot of the Boeing 757 on which he was riding appeared near his seat about 45 minutes into their flight from San Francisco to Boston. "I wasn’t paying much attention at that point," Clarke told the local news station, "but then \[the pilot\] goes back to the cockpit and he comes on the PA and says, 'We’ve discovered we have some damage on one of the front flaps and we’re going to divert to Denver and put you all in a different plane.'" It was during that emergency landing that the man filmed a video of the problem, which was later shared in a [public Facebook post]() by his wife: part of the wing had somehow been torn up and could be seen visibly flapping. https://twitter.com/ksullivannews/status/1759885603657691448 Speaking with local reporters, Clarke said he heard an "incredibly loud vibration" during takeoff — and his fellow passenger, identified only by their Reddit username "octopus\_hug," seems to have shared that same experience. "Sitting right on the wing and the noise after reaching altitude was much louder than normal," the user said in a [post on r/UnitedAirlines]() that featured a photo of the wing damage mid-flight. "I opened the window to see the wing looking like this. How panicked should I be? Do I need to tell a flight crew member?" ## Not Again As the airline confirmed to *NBC10* and other news outlets, none of the 165 passengers on the 757 were harmed during the incident, and they were rerouted on other flights back to Boston. All the same, it's still incredibly jarring — especially considering that this is at least the *sixth* time this year, including three other incidents with Boeing aircrafts, that scary plane circumstances have made headlines. In January, Boeing came under fire first for one of its doors straight up [flying off in the middle of a flight](), and again when another of its planes got a [crack in the cockpit window](), plus when yet another [straight up caught fire](). In February, meanwhile, health-related incidents garnered the worst kind of attention when a man died in the air after [spewing blood]() from his mouth and nose on one international flight and one unlucky passenger on a different intercontinental flight had [maggots rain down]() on her from the luggage compartment. To be fair, [weird]() and [dangerous]() stuff happens on commercial flights [all the tim]()e — but with so many big stories less than two months into the year, it doesn't seem like a particularly auspicious time to fly. **More on planes:** [*Mighty Wind Propels Commercial Jets Faster Than Speed of Sound*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()