{"id":149672,"date":"2026-07-13T22:08:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-13T16:38:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aviationa2z.com\/?p=149672"},"modified":"2026-07-13T19:56:05","modified_gmt":"2026-07-13T14:26:05","slug":"united-777-departs-sfo-after-viral-photo-claims-crack","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aviationa2z.com\/index.php\/2026\/07\/13\/united-777-departs-sfo-after-viral-photo-claims-crack\/","title":{"rendered":"United Boeing 777 Departs San Francisco After Viral Photo Claims Crack"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

CHICAGO-<\/strong> United Airlines (UA)<\/a> is facing online scrutiny after a passenger photograph appeared to show a crack near the wing root area of a Boeing 777-200 preparing to depart San Francisco (SFO) for Chicago (ORD).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The image spread quickly across social media, drawing thousands of comments about aircraft age and maintenance standards. Aviation professionals, however, cautioned that a single photograph cannot establish whether an aircraft has sustained structural damage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"United
Photo: Cl\u00e9ment Alloing<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Viral Photo: United 777 Crack?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The post came from Lauren Self, who photographed the tail section of an aircraft believed to be N779UA, a 30-year-old 777-200 operated by United, according to ch-aviation and flight tracking data. She stated that a crack appeared visible on the aircraft’s wing-to-fuselage fairing before the jet left San Francisco for Chicago O’Hare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The aircraft was reportedly one of United’s original 777-200s<\/a>, which entered service during the mid-1990s. The post gained rapid engagement, with commenters questioning whether an aircraft of that age should still operate scheduled passenger services. Others asked why the airline did not hold the departure until the apparent damage could be examined.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Self was not travelling on the United flight. She was flying with Southwest Airlines (WN)<\/a> and raised the matter with the pilots operating her own aircraft.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In her post, she wrote:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

“I showed the pilots on the Southwest flight I was on. “Uhh, that’s not good. We need to get that grounded immediately.” They tried to get UA to get it back to the gate, but couldn’t get to ground staff in time. So now it’s flying :(“<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\n

I showed the pilots on the Southwest flight I was on. \u201cUhh, that\u2019s not good. We need to get that grounded immediately.\u201d

They tried to get UA to get it back to the gate, but couldn\u2019t get to ground staff in time. So now it\u2019s flying \ud83d\ude41 pic.twitter.com\/Pxc3kEUWWG<\/a><\/p>— Lauren Self (@laurenlself) July 11, 2026<\/a><\/blockquote>