LOS ANGELES () — Passengers on an Alaska Airlines flight from Washington D.C. to Los Angeles endured a bit of a scare Thursday night when the plane made a rough landing after losing a tire on takeoff.
One flyer recorded the nerve-wracking arrival at LAX. The cabin broke out in applause after the plane safely put wheels down and began slowing to taxi on the tarmac.
There were 175 passengers and six crew members on Flight 309, which landed safely at LAX around 8 p.m. with no reported injuries, according to the airline.
The gear problem was observed shortly after takeoff from Dulles International Airport.
The cabin crew reported over the radio feeling a “jolt” strong enough to pop open some overhead luggage bins and trigger one emergency oxygen mask to fall from the ceiling.
They asked the airport to check the runway to see if perhaps they ran over something on the surface or if they did in fact lose some of the tire. Crews checked the tarmac surface and confirmed finding pieces of tire.
“There’s no reason we can see to discontinue the flight at this point,” a cabin crew member is heard saying on radio traffic. “Just press on to Los Angeles and take care of it there.”
The flight crew declared an emergency as a precaution and fire engines could be seen ready nearby at LAX as the plane landed. LAX officials say the plane was able to safely taxi on its own to the gate without additional disruption to airport operations.
Alaska Airlines says the Boeing 737-900 will be pulled from service while the incident is investigated.
“While this incident is a rare occurrence, our flight crews train extensively to safely manage through many scenarios,” Alaska Airlines said. “We understand this might have been a concerning moment for our guests on board. We apologize for what they experienced.”
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