LOS ANGELES – A JetBlue airliner with faulty landing gear touched down safely Wednesday at Los Angeles International Airport after circling the region for three hours with its front wheels turned sideways, unable to be retracted.
No injuries were immediately reported among the 140 passengers and six crew members, fire officials said.
After flying out over the ocean to burn off fuel, the plane seemed to float through the air as it made its final approach about 6:19 p.m. The pilot balanced the craft on its rear landing wheels, keeping the damaged front gear away from the ground for as long as possible.
The front gear was the last part of the plane to touch down. The tires shredded and the twisted wheels gave off sparks from the friction.
But the plane held true and moments later the Airbus A320 stopped on the runway as emergency vehicles approached.
“It was a very, very smooth landing. The pilot did an outstanding job,” said fire Battalion Chief Lou Roupoli. “There was a big hallelujah and a lot of clapping on that aircraft.”
Within minutes, passengers walked down a mobile ramp to waiting buses on the tarmac.
Zachary Mascoon said it was surreal to watch the emergency unfold on news coverage on a television inside the plane. At one point, he said, he tried to call his family, but his cell phone call wouldn’t go through.
“I wanted to call my dad to tell him I’m alive so far,” the 27-year-old musician said.
“At the end it was the worst because you didn’t know if it was going to work, if we would catch fire. It was very scary. Grown men were crying,” said Diane Hamilton, 32.
Flight 292 left Burbank at 3:17 p.m., en route to JFK International Airport in New York, according to JetBlue.
“Shortly after the plane left, the pilot discovered he may have a problem with the landing gear,” FAA spokesman Donn Walker said.
After it left Burbank, the flight was diverted to Long Beach Airport, where the plane circled, then was cleared to land at Los Angeles International Airport. It stayed aloft to burn off fuel and lighten its weight, said Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Donn Walker.
Associated Press
Flames and smoke pour from the broken nose gear of a JetBlue Airbus A320 after it landed Wednesday in Los Angeles.
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