Delta flight forced to return to New York after emergency slide separates from aircraft

A Delta Airlines flight was forced to return to New York's John F. Kennedy International airport on Friday, after one of the plane's emergency slides separated from the Boeing 767 passenger jet, officials announced.

The incident marks the latest mechanical issue for Boeing, which has experienced a series of unexpected quality issues recently. One incident in January saw a door blow off of a Boeing 737 Max 9 while in the air, and a plane engine cover fell off in Denver earlier this month.

The pilots of Delta Air Lines Flight 520 reportedly felt vibrations and heard a banging shortly after takeoff, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said, according to ABC News. The plane returned to the airport after roughly 33 minutes in the air, and workers determined that one of the emergency slides had broken off in mid-flight.

Delta said it is not clear where the slide landed, but that crews were working on locating it. All 176 passengers on the flight, which was headed to the Los Angeles International airport (LAX), were put on a different plane, per CBS News.

"As nothing is more important than the safety of our customers and people, Delta flight crews enacted their extensive training and followed procedures to return to JFK. We appreciate their professionalism and our customers' patience for the delay in their travels," Delta said in a statement. "After the aircraft had safely landed and proceeded to a gate, it was observed that the emergency slide had separated from the aircraft. Delta is fully supporting retrieval efforts and will fully cooperate in investigations."

The plane has since been taken out of commission and is being evaluated. The FAA said it is also investigating the incident.