Cockpit audio details chaos after hole rips in Phoenix plane

PHOENIX - The Federal Aviation Administration released dramatic audio recordings Tuesday between air traffic controllers and pilots aboard Southwest Airlines flight 812.

The two sides worked together on April 1 to get the plane on the ground after a six-foot hole ripped open in the fuselage .

The recordings indicate Southwest Flight 812 started out just like any other.

But a few minutes in to the Phoenix to Sacramento flight, the pilot declares an emergency.

"We lost the cabin," the pilot can be heard saying.

The roof of the Boeing 737 had ripped open, leaving a gaping hole.

"Apparently we've got a hole in the fuselage in the back of the airplane," the pilot says to air traffic controllers.

The plane quickly descended from 36,000 feet to just 10,000 feet as the pilot tries to figure out where to land.

"We're probably going to turn around and go back to Phoenix," said the pilot on the recordings.

However, the pilot soon realizes he won't make Phoenix and asks for the closest airport.

"How far away is Yuma from us right now," asks the pilot.

After being told Yuma was just 50 miles away, the pilot is heard saying: "We'll take Yuma."

Southwest flight 812 landed in Yuma a short time later with all passengers on board safe and sound.