A boom, a whoosh of air and then terror on Flight 1380
Associated PressPHILADELPHIA — There was a loud boom, and the plane started shaking violently. McGinty’s wife, Kristin McGinty, who was also on board, later told USA Today: “Some heroes wear capes, but mine wears a cowboy hat.” When a flight attendant asked if anyone knew CPR, retired school nurse Peggy Phillips got out of her seatbelt, and she and the firefighter laid the grievously injured woman down. “They said there’s a hole and, uh, someone went out.” The air traffic controller responded with seeming disbelief: “Um, I’m sorry, you said there was a hole and somebody went out?” “Yes,” Shults said. “That was a very difficult position to be in, to think who is most important to your life and in what order?” ‘I THOUGHT IT WAS THE END OF MY LIFE’ As the plane descended steeply but steadily toward Philadelphia, the cabin was noisy from the open window, but the passengers were mostly quiet, maybe because they had their masks on, said passenger Amanda Bourman, of New York. Eric Zilbert, an administrator with the California Education Department, said even the children “did very well.” ‘NERVES OF STEEL’ Passengers praised Shults for her professionalism during the emergency.
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