The incident, which was caught on camera, happened Monday shortly after the Boeing 737 took off from Bush Airport, headed toward Fort Meyers, Florida.
United said bubble wrap was sucked into the plane's engine. It's unclear how it happened, but the airline said employees are always looking for litter on tarmacs.
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"The plane was nosediving, and the pilot was bringing the plane back up," a passenger told ABC13 on Wednesday. "The plane was also rocking back and forth a lot."
The plane in this situation was repaired and is now back in service.