The windshield of a Boeing aircraft cracked in midair, frightening the crew and forcing an unexpected landing.
It happened on a Virgin Atlantic flight from London to San Francisco.
Three hours after the plane departed from Heathrow Airport, the Boeing 787-9 aircraft experienced "damage to the outer layer of the windshield in the cockpit," the company mentioned.
Authorities noticed that the crack penetrated the glass window, which is "made of multiple layers," as reported by New York Post.
"The outer layer, which partially cracked, is a non-structural layer, resistant to wear and tear," a Virgin spokesperson said.
It is not clear what caused this incident, which took place in May.
Experts rule out the possibility that the aircraft hit a bird causing the windshield crack.
The plane was at an altitude of 40,000 feet (12,000 meters), somewhere between Greenland and Iceland, when it had to turn back.
The outside temperature at that time was -58 degrees Celsius.
The pilots remained calm, despite the cabin depressurization, and the airline apologized to the passengers.
The crack is visible in the photos obtained by The Sun.
Passengers were offered accommodation when they arrived back in London and flew to San Francisco the next day.
The incident is just one of the recent issues for the American aircraft manufacturer Boeing.
On Sunday, a Boeing 777 operated by KLM returned to Amsterdam due to a technical problem.