NORFOLK -- The NTSB is investigating what happened to an AirTran Airways plane that maneuvered to avoid another aircraft on Oct. 26.
A flight attendant and 10-year-old boy were hurt when they were “tossed to the ceiling” when the Boeing 717 suddenly dropped several hundred feet, according to a preliminary report by the NTSB.
Everyone else was seated.
Around the same time, the plane's collision avoidance alarm began warning of a second airplane dangerously close.
An FAA spokesman says its unclear if the sharp loss of altitude was related to the collision avoidance maneuver or due to turbulence in the area.
The incident happened at 35,000 feet above Norfolk as the airplane prepared to make its initial descent into White Plains, NY. The flight originated in Orlando, Florida.
The FAA says it has no evidence of a second aircraft ever being too close to the AirTran flight.
The plane continued to New York where paramedics met the flight.
The boy was treated for a minor head wound and the flight attendant suffered an injury to her ankle, according to AirTran spokesman Christopher White.
"At this point, we don't believe that ther was what we consider a true miss or a close call," White said.
