Passengers on Southwest Flight 1496 from Burbank to Las Vegas were left terrified after the plane took a sudden nosedive shortly after takeoff on Friday.
NEW: Southwest pilot forced to nosedive to avoid a midair collision after takeoff from Burbank to Las Vegas.
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) July 25, 2025
Passengers were reportedly launched out of their seats into the ceiling, with passengers comparing the incident to the ‘Tower of Terror’ ride.
“About 10 minutes into the… pic.twitter.com/8QQKoDslP3
The maneuver, reportedly to avoid a midair collision, sent passengers flying from their seats. “It felt like the Tower of Terror,” said Caitlin Burdi. “We fell 20 to 30 feet in the air. The screaming—it was terrifying.”
According to Burdi, the pilot later announced they had lost contact with air traffic control and had to avoid another aircraft. At least one flight attendant was injured, and another quit mid-flight, passengers said.
Comedian Jimmy Dore wrote, “Pilot said his collision warning went off & he needed to avoid a plane coming at us.” Southwest Airlines has not responded to media inquiries.
“It was absolutely terrifying,” Burdi added. “We really thought we were plummeting to a plane crash.”