Callum Jones
A United Airlines pilot was left injured after a 'mystery object' struck the cockpit windshield at 36,000 feet.
Flight 1093 left Denver for Los Angeles on Thursday (October 16) morning with 134 passengers and six crew members on board.
However, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 ran into difficulties while cruising above Moab, Utah, when an unidentified object struck the windscreen with almighty force.
The impact cracked one layer of the aircraft’s multilayered windshield, with pictures circulating online revealing the damage done to the plane.
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The pilot was left with bruises and scratches, including plenty of glass cuts covering his arm.
Other photos shared on social media show broken glass covering the dashboard and the cockpit, as the United flight was forced to make an emergency landing in Salt Lake City.
In a statement provided to UNILAD, United Airlines said in a statement: "On Thursday, United Flight 1093 landed safely in Salt Lake City to address damage to its multilayered windshield.
"We arranged for another aircraft to take customers to Los Angeles later that day, and our maintenance team is working to return the aircraft to service."
All passengers landed safely at in Salt Lake City before being re-boarded onto another aircraft bound for Los Angeles International Airport. They arrived at their intended destination six hours behind schedule.
Heather Ramsey was one of those onboard the flight, and she told Fox 11 that she was filming the sunrise when panic occurred.
Ramsey said: "One flight attendant raised her voice and told the other, ‘Get back. Get to the back of the aircraft, stop service'.
"Unfortunately, we have some bad news. The aircraft has collided with an object.
"I was just looking out the window thinking, ‘We could go down at any time.’ It was really scary. We were all holding our breath until the very end. You could definitely feel the tension on the entire aircraft."
Ramsey could not provide any clue as to what struck the aircraft, adding to Fox 11: "That seems a little high for a bird. People are saying scrap metal, it could be space debris, drones?"
The NTSB, which investigates the 'probable causes of the accidents and events' in aviation, are investigating this incident.
"The NTSB is investigating a cracked windscreen on a Boeing 737-8 during cruise flight near Moab, Utah, Thursday," the NTSB said in a statement.
They added: "Operating as United Flight 1093 from DEN to LAX, airplane diverted safely to SLC. NTSB gathering radar, weather, flight recorder data. Windscreen being sent to NTSB laboratories for examination."