Cracked windshield forces regional jet to land at Wichita Mid-Continent

The windshield of an Embraer regional jet cracked Monday morning while it was in the air over Kansas, forcing the aircraft to make an unscheduled stop at Wichita Mid-Continent Airport, authorities said.

The 50-seat jet was over Salina en route from Sioux Falls, S.D., to Dallas at 8:10 a.m. when the aircraft’s pilot requested an emergency landing at Mid-Continent, airport spokeswoman Valerie Wise said.

The jet, which was being flown by an operating carrier for American Airlines, landed safely, Wise said. Fifty-two people, including crew, were on board.

Investigators were still trying to determine why the windshield cracked, Wise said. Bird strikes frequently cause the problem, but she said she didn’t know if that was the case in this situation.

By mid-morning, American was in the process of re-booking passengers on other flights so they could continue their trip, she added.

This story was originally published September 22, 2014 at 10:15 AM with the headline "Cracked windshield forces regional jet to land at Wichita Mid-Continent."