Shortly after takeoff, a United Flight 1274 pilot declared an emergency after noticing that an unlatched window in the cockpit had opened.
The plane, which is a Boeing 737-900, took off from Bradley International Airport on April 18. It had already reached 4,000 feet, but was able to return to a runway at Bradley, where it landed safely.
A spokesperson for United Airlines told NBC Connecticut that they "re-accommodated their customers on another aircraft" after the incident.
The plane was headed to Dulles International Airport near Washington, D.C. and was carrying 178 people in total, the spokesperson said. Since the incident, the plane has resumed service as normal.
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An audio recording captured the tense moment in the sky. You can hear the noise of wind coming through the cockpit window, and one of the pilots struggling to hear the air traffic controller.
Pilot: "We're going to have to come back for a landing."
Air Traffic Controller: "Declaring an emergency?"
Local
Pilot: "Yes, we're declaring an emergency."
Air Traffic Controller: "1274, when able, state the nature of your emergency."
Pilot: "We just had a window pop open after takeoff. We don't have any other issues other than that."
The incident happened after a near-miss due to runway traffic at Bradley Airport.
