Passengers Claim Southwest Pilot Said 'We're Going Down' Just Before Unplanned Descent

The FAA is looking into a Southwest Airlines flight earlier this week after a pilot reportedly used the PA system to tell passengers "we're going down."

Flight 3426 was carrying 96 customers and five crew members from Tampa Bay to Raleigh-Durham on Tuesday afternoon when a maintenance issue forced the pilot to descend, Southwest said in a statement.

The plane landed safely at Raleigh-Durham.

Passenger Grace Stroud told CNN the pilot came on the PA system and said "We're in trouble; we're going down." Another passenger, Shelley Wills, corroborated what Stroud said.

"He said, 'We're going down.' And everyone is looking around like, 'Is this a joke? Is he serious?' And then you felt the nosedive," she told CNN affiliate WTVD.

In its statement, Southwest said the incident needs to be put in context. "The Captain notified the cabin using the public address system that he was going down to a lower altitude just before an unplanned but controlled descent. The maintenance issue was resolved before the flight safely landed at Raleigh-Durham," it said.