Trump-Vance Boeing 737 Door Opens Mid-Flight, Makes Emergency Landing in Milwaukee

Trump-Vance Boeing 737 Door Opens Mid-Flight, Makes Emergency Landing in Milwaukee

BY JASPER YU-DAWIDOWICZ Published on August 16, 2024 0 COMMENTS

Donald Trump and J.D. Vance's private Boeing 737-800 plane just made an emergency landing in Milwaukee after one of the aircraft's doors was left open on departure. 
 

Details of the Incident
 

According to flight tracking data from Flightradar24, the Trump-Vance jet, registered as N917XA, departed from Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport (MKE) at 1:06 p.m. on Friday, August 16th. 

 



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Photo of N917XA - Eastern Air Express 737-8J6 at RNO on AeroXplorer Aviation Database
Photo: AeroXplorer | Harrison Bacci

 

At around 1:11 p.m., the pilots onboard the aircraft declared an emergency due to loud noises in the cabin: “We’re going to go ahead and declare an emergency. We got 43 souls onboard," according to radio communications from LiveATC. 
 

It wasn't immediately clear what was causing the noise, but a minute later, the pilot clarified the situation to air traffic control, saying they were seeing "positive pressurization in the back," but had "a door open, no lights or anything up front."

 

According to the pilot, “the problem is that L1 is leaking and it’s extremely loud in the back but we have no indication that the door itself is open. And door L1," the forward-most door on the left side of the aircraft. 

 



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The aircraft leveled at 5,500 feet as it returned to the Milwaukee airport. Other aircraft in the area were placed into holding patterns to allow for the expedited landing of the emergency aircraft. 

 

The Trump-Vance plane descended and touching down safely at 1:23 p.m. local time. The plane was followed by MKE emergency service vehicles and remained on the taxiway for a few minutes before taxiing to the ramp.

 

Video of the aircraft on the taxiway was captured by X user, formerly known as Twitter, Asher Heimermann. 

 

No injuries were reported, and the aircraft departed MKE again at 2:19 p.m. for its final destination, Cincinnati. 

 

Mr. Vance was onboard the aircraft, traveling with his wife Usha and dog, along with a handful of staff, secret service, and journalists who have been traveling with the vice president nominee as he campaigns across the country. 

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Jasper Yu-Dawidowicz
Aviation enthusiast based out of New York City. I love to fly, travel the world, and share stories through writing.

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