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American Airlines flight returns to St. Louis after reported odor on board

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Coverage spectrum

Covered by 3 outlets, all right-leaning.

4 articles in total. The spectrum counts each outlet once and leaves opinion out. How we measure bias

Passengers seated in rows inside an airplane cabin, with seatback screens on.
Image via Fox NewsHow images are chosenReport this image

The New York Post, Daily Mail and Fox News report that American Airlines Flight 5089 from St. Louis to Philadelphia turned back and landed at St. Louis Lambert International Airport on Saturday, October 17, after a reported odor on board. The airline told Fox News Digital that the flight returned shortly after takeoff following the odor. Passengers told the outlets that oxygen masks dropped during the flight and that the departure was delayed about two hours. Fox News Digital reviewed FlightAware data showing the plane was in the air for 34 minutes. The cause has not been confirmed; an aviation expert told Fox News Digital that engine oil entering the air supply could explain the odor.

Headline and summary written by Mantle’s AI from the coverage below, under published rules. How this works

What happened

Key points

Each point shows who reports it, from Far Left to Far Right.

  1. According to American Airlines, Flight 5089 from St. Louis to Philadelphia turned back and landed at St. Louis Lambert airport on Saturday, October 17, after a reported odor on board.

    One outletFox News· Far Right

  2. Passengers said oxygen masks dropped from the ceiling during the flight.

    One side only: the rightReported byRight2Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Right
    New York Post, Daily Mail
    Far Right
    Fox News
  3. Passengers said the flight was delayed about two hours before it took off.

    One side only: the rightReported byRight2See the outletsHide the outlets
    Right
    New York Post, Daily Mail
  4. FlightAware data reviewed by Fox News Digital showed the plane was in the air for 34 minutes before it landed back in St. Louis.

    One outletFox News· Far Right

  5. The cause of the odor has not been confirmed; an aviation expert said engine oil entering the air supply could explain it.

    One outletFox News· Far Right

How each side tells it

Compare views

Every outlet present, rated right or far right, reports that a Saturday American Airlines flight from St. Louis to Philadelphia turned back after a reported odor and that oxygen masks dropped, and they tell it mainly through passengers’ accounts of fear.

  • the left

    No coverage yet

    No left-leaning outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.

  • the center

    No coverage yet

    No center outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.

  • the right

    3 outlets

    Right-side headlines lead with passengers’ fear, quoting lines like “smelled like fire”; Fox News, rated Far Right, leads with the starkest quote, “We’re going to die”.

    Illinois mom’s Sensational language“harrowing”The word adds dramatic emotional weight that the reported facts do not require.More neutral: textDisagree with this highlight? text she sent kids as American Airlines plane ‘smelled like fire’
    New York PostRightAll right-leaning headlines

The words they chose

Language to notice

Words that carry a judgement beyond the facts. Tap a highlighted word anywhere on the page to see why.

  • Left

    Has not covered this story.

  • Center

    Has not covered this story.

  • Right1

    harrowing

In the outlets’ own words

  • Sensational language

    harrowingMore neutral: text

    The word adds dramatic emotional weight that the reported facts do not require.

    Illinois mom’s harrowing text she sent kids as American Airlines plane ‘smelled like fire’

    Used byNew York Post (Right)

See the full language guide

See for yourself

Side by side

What each side leads with and what it leaves out. Open a side to read its headlines.

From the left

0 outlets

No left-leaning outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.

From the center

0 outlets

No center outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.

From the right

3 outlets

Leads with

  • passenger fear and survival
  • oxygen masks dropping mid-flight
  • cabin smell described as fire or smoke
See the 4 headlines from the rightHide the headlines
  • Fox NewsFar Right

    'We're going to die': Passengers recount midair terror before emergency landing

    Oxygen masks dropped mid-flight as an American Airlines plane made an emergency landing at St. Louis airport on Oct. 17 after passengers reported a strange odor.

    Also published by New York Post. It counts once.

  • Terrified passengers began filming American Airlines emergency landing after noticing issues with its thrust before oxygen masks dropped from ceiling

    American Airlines Flight 5089 from St. Louis to Philadelphia on Saturday was forced to turn around and emergency land after passengers smelled smoke.

  • Illinois mom’s Sensational language“harrowing”The word adds dramatic emotional weight that the reported facts do not require.More neutral: textDisagree with this highlight? text she sent kids as American Airlines plane ‘smelled like fire’

    An Illinois mom on board an American Airlines plane sent a harrowing message to her kids fearing for her life as the cabin “smelled like fire” – before she was forced to “jump from the wing” following an emergency landing. …

  • New York PostRightFox News report

    Passengers recount terror in the sky before plane forced into emergency landing: ‘Is this real?’

    New York Post published a report that is shown in full at Fox News. The headline is the one New York Post gave it.

Articles you open from here build My Mix, a private picture of how your reading spreads across the spectrum, kept on this device. What is My Mix?

The left is Far Left and Left together. The right is Right and Far Right together. Every outlet keeps its own five-point rating.

Who reported it when

How the coverage built up

  • Left

    No report yet

    From the outlets Mantle follows

  • Center

    No report yet

    From the outlets Mantle follows

  • Right

    First to report

    New York Post, Oct 19, 5:17 AM EDT

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. New York PostRightOct 19, 5:17 AM EDT
  2. Daily MailRightOct 19, 4:43 PM EDT
  3. Fox NewsFar RightOct 20, 7:00 AM EDT

Times are the ones the outlets published in their own feeds, in Eastern time. Opinion is left out.

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