Couple on United flight that took a nosedive ‘were praying for a miracle’

A passenger aboard a United Airlines flight that took a terrifying plunge near Hawaii described how the ordeal felt like a “rollercoaster” — and said he and his wife “were praying for a miracle” as the plane came to within 775 feet of the Pacific Ocean.

Rod Williams II, his wife and two kids – a 10-year-old daughter and 7-year-old son — were sitting near the back of the Boeing 777, which took off from Kahului Airport in Maui on at 2:49 p.m. Dec. 18.

“It felt like you were climbing to the top of a roller coaster. It was at that point,” Williams, of Ohio, told CNN about how the plane climbed at “a concerning rate” for a few seconds.

“There were a number of screams on the plane. Everybody knew that something was out of the ordinary, or at least that this was not normal,” he said.

About a minute into its flight to San Francisco, the plane took a “dramatic, nose-down” dive for several seconds, Williams told CNN.

“When the plane started to nosedive, multiple screams are being let out, at that point. You’re trying your best to maintain your composure – there’s obviously kids on the flight – nobody really knows what’s going on, but at the same time, you’re concerned,” he said.

“You don’t know if this is an issue, but it was certainly out of the ordinary,” added Williams, who studied aviation in college.

He and his wife glanced at each other as they sat on either side of their kids during the white-knuckle descent.  

“It’s tense, you don’t really have a chance to speak or to conjure up words, you’re just kind of gripping the seat and praying under your breath,” Williams told the network.

“I asked her later and sure enough … we were praying for a miracle, because we felt like this could be it,” he said.

After the roughly 10-second plunge, the aircraft climbed steeply again and resumed normal flight as flight attendants comforted some of the passengers.

“Someone from the cockpit got on the intercom and said, ‘All right, folks, you probably felt a couple G’s on that one, but everything’s gonna be OK. We’re gonna be all right,’ ” Williams told CNN.

No one was injured during the incident, which had not been publicized until The Air Current reported about it, citing data from FlightRadar24.

The plane had reached an altitude of about 2,200 feet before taking the plunge – reaching a descent rate of almost 8,600 feet per minute before the pilots regained control when it was only 775 feet from the water.

On Monday, United rep Josh Freed told The Post that the crew “filed the appropriate safety report” after the plane’s landing in San Francisco.

“United then closely coordinated with the FAA and ALPA (Air Line Pilots Association) on an investigation that ultimately resulted in the pilots receiving additional training. Safety remains our highest priority,” Freed said.

“The pilots fully cooperated with the investigation and their training is ongoing,” he said, adding that the two pilots had about 25,000 hours of combined flying time.

Williams said he was unaware how close the plane came to the ocean until Sunday night, when his dad showed him the report on the incident.

“Now that I know, statistically what had happened, and that we were about 5 to 5.2 seconds from hitting the water, you know, I’m definitely counting my blessings,” he told CNN.

Williams also praised the pilots for their “amazing, amazing recovery efforts.”

He added: “I’m reminded that when my wife and I pray together before the flights that, you know, there’s a God that’s here in that.”