Tato Lovere’s mother was on an American Airlines plane flying to Rome when the pilot changed course in an incident so terrifying that she sent her daughter a message that she thought was her last.

The mother said she “thought she was going to die” aboard the United Airlines plane, which plummeted nearly 30,000 feet in 10 minutes.

Artist Tato Lovere, from Jersey City, New Jersey, USA, was on board the plane on a flight from Newark to Rome on Wednesday evening (September 13) when she was overcome with panic.

On Wednesday evening (September 13), the pilot quickly decided to reduce altitude due to a possible cabin pressure problem, after which he changed course, and people started looking around at each other, not knowing what was happening, Tato says.

Tato, 47, said she was with her boyfriend and said she texted her daughter to let her know how much she loved her, but without trying to worry her.

At first, she said: ” First and foremost, I tried my best to text my daughter without causing fear so that she would know that I love her very much and am proud of her.”

Tato said her daughter had followed the flight online and saw it winding circles over Halifax.

She anxiously called the airline afterward to find out what was happening but was told everything was “fine.”

” People were turning their heads, looking at each other for answers to questions without screaming. It felt like you were about to die,” she says.

The airplane, with 270 passengers and 14 crew members on board, departed at 8:37 p.m. for Rome-Fiumicino International Airport but returned to Newark Liberty International Airport a few hours later, at 12:27 a.m.

Tato would celebrate his birthday and meet with gallerists in the Italian capital.

A UA spokesman said the plane returned to the departure airport “to address a possible loss of cabin pressure” and that “the flight went safely, and there was no loss of cabin pressure.”

Tato and her boyfriend were booked on the next UA flight to Rome a few hours later, but she admitted that the exciting experience left her “on edge” about any future breakouts.