FAA investigates low-altitude incident involving Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 en route to Oklahoma

“Southwest 4069, low-altitude flight warning”, asked an air traffic controller, “how are you out there?“This alarming exchange occurred as a Southwest Airlines Boeing B737 MAX 8 (registration N8555Z) was approaching Will Rogers World Airport in Oklahoma City, USA.

The plane, en route from Las Vegas, descended to a low altitude of about 1,700 to 1,800 feet while still ten miles from the runway and flying over Yukon High School. After confirming there were no problems, the pilots quickly corrected the altitude to 3,000 feet.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reported: “An automatic warning alerted air traffic control and prompted them to inform the crew of Southwest Airlines Flight 4069 of the low altitude nine miles from the airport..“ and have launched an investigation into the accident.