Plane Forced To Return To O'Hare After Windshield Issue

ILLINOIS — A United flight was forced to return to O'Hare Wednesday morning after "an issue with the cockpit windshield," airline representatives told Patch.

The flight, UA1879, departed O'Hare just after 9 a.m. and was bound to arrive in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, just before 1 p.m. local time.

The airplane returned to O'Hare shortly after departing, making it about halfway to the Illinois border with Iowa before turning around. The plane was met by emergency services as a precaution before it taxied to the gate, where the 156 passengers and six crew members safely deplaned, officials said.

There was no evidence of a fire found onboard, a United spokesperson said.

"We appreciate the quick action of our crew to keep our passengers and employees safe and we’ve arranged for a new aircraft to take customers to their destination," the spokesperson said.

According to United's flight status page, the flight is now estimated to depart at 1:30 p.m., four and a half hours late.

"The flight crew was reassigned as they would have exceeded the FAA's allowable work hours before landing in San Jose del Cabo, due to earlier maintenance delays," the flight status page reads.