The 26-year-old Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 from Santa Ana declared an emergency and diverted.

An Alaska Airlines flight bound for Seattle made an emergency route to Fresno, California, on Sunday evening after rapidly descending from cruising altitude caused by an unspecified technical problem.

Flight AS671 departed John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, California at approximately 9:00 pm PT on Sunday, September 6, 2026. Shortly after reaching the cruising altitude of 40,000 feet, the flight crew began a sudden sharp descent, descending 30,000 feet to stabilize the aircraft at 10,000 feet for several minutes—a standard maneuver for cabin pressurization problems or emergency mechanical anomalies.

After the crash, the pilots officially declared an emergency to air traffic control. Vectors were quickly provided to direct the plane to Fresno Yosemite International Airport, where the plane landed safely on Runway 29L about an hour after taking off from Santa Ana.

Maintenance crews are inspecting the 26-year-old Boeing 737-700 to determine the exact cause of the technical problem before the plane is cleared to return to service.