Plane From O'Hare Makes Emergency Landing At DuPage Airport

WEST CHICAGO, IL — An American Airlines jet that took off from O'Hare Airport made an emergency landing at DuPage Airport Monday morning after those on board reported a fire broke out on the plane. SkyWest 2936, which was en route to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was diverted to the airport in West Chicago shortly after takeoff. The Federal Aviation Administration is now investigating the incident, Elizabeth Isham Cory, a spokeswoman for the FAA, said in a statement.

The statement read:

SkyWest 2936, a regional jet, departed ORD with an intended destination of Cedar Rapids, IA, when the pilots reported possible smoke in the cockpit at about 9 a.m. this morning

No injuries have been reported.

“The flight landed safely and passengers deplaned normally,” Marissa Snow, a spokeswoman for SkyWest Airlines, told the Chicago Tribune. It's not clear at this point, she said, if a fire broke out in the cockpit of the plane.

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Nick Ludwig, a passenger from Cedar Rapids, posted a video on his Twitter account explaining the events that had others on board on the edge of their seats as they hoped for a safe landing.

"We took off from O'Hare. Everybody started to immediately notice some smoke ... thankfully, the pilot turned us around and we made an emergency landing at the DuPage Airport in a matter of minutes and everything turned out OK," Ludwig said.

Sherman Dillard, an assistant coach for the men's basketball team at the University of Iowa, was also on board. He said the plane landed at DuPage just 10 minutes after its takeoff from O'Hare. He shared the following video on his Twitter account showing emergency crews on ground at the airport and said he was "feeling blessed right now."

A flight attendant on board initially told passengers the smoke on board was just mist, Ludwig said.

"Immediately everyone started to panic and said, 'No, this isn't mist," Ludwig said.

The American Airlines website noted the flight was originally scheduled to take off from O'Hare at 8:30 a.m. on Monday but was diverted to DuPage. The plane is operated by SkyWest Airlines.

Representatives at DuPage Airport were not able to comment Monday morning regarding the reported emergency landing.

FAA investigations take several weeks to complete, Cory said.

Patch will update with more information as it becomes available.

Photo caption: American Airlines flight AA2936 made an emergency landing at DuPage Airport on Monday. Photo via Nick Ludwig