Dallas police are investigating an incident where a bullet struck a Southwest Airlines plane as it was getting ready to take off from Dallas Love Field Airport on Friday evening. The bullet hit the right side of the aircraft, just beneath the flight deck, while the plane was taxiing for its scheduled flight to Indianapolis. The incident occurred shortly before 10 p.m., according to Southwest Airlines.
No injuries were reported after a bullet struck a Southwest Airlines plane, but the flight safely returned to the gate, and passengers disembarked, authorities said. The airline assured that affected passengers would be accommodated on another flight. “Law enforcement has been alerted, and the plane has been taken out of service,” Southwest stated.
The source of the gunfire and whether the plane was the intended target remain unclear. As of early Saturday, no arrests had been made. The Dallas Police Department confirmed that officers arrived to find the aircraft had been struck by a bullet, and an investigation is currently underway.
The Boeing 737-800 sustained damage after a bullet hit the aircraft near the cockpit, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
Meanwhile, the runway the plane was preparing to use reopened Friday night after being temporarily closed for the police investigation. Dallas Love Field Airport said there was little disruption to airport operations, according to a statement on X.
In a separate incident on the same day, passengers on another Southwest Airlines flight in Denver had to evacuate after a cell phone battery caught fire, igniting an airplane seat.
This incident follows a recent move by U.S. regulators to halt all flights to Haiti for a month, after three U.S.-based airline jets were struck by bullets while flying over Port-au-Prince.
The shooting also comes about two years after a woman allegedly fired multiple shots into the air at Dallas Love Field, causing panic as travelers fled the airport. Located about 6 miles northwest of downtown Dallas, Love Field primarily serves Southwest Airlines, according to the airport’s website.