United Airlines plane forced to make emergency landing due to tire issue during take-off, US News
A United Airlines jetliner bound for Japan successfully landed in Los Angeles on Thursday after losing a tire during takeoff from San Francisco.
Fire engines were on standby at Los Angeles International Airport, but were not needed as the Boeing 777 landed without incident.
Airport spokesman Dae Levine reported that the plane landed safely on the runway two-thirds of the way down.
The flight had 235 passengers and a crew of 14 onboard.
United Airlines stated that the aircraft, which was built in 2002, was designed to land safely even with missing or damaged tires.
Boeing 777 aircraft have six tires on each of the two main landing gears.
A video of Flight 35 taking off shows the plane losing one of the six tires on its left-side main landing gear assembly moments after departure.
Pic: AP
Debris from the tire landed in an airport carpark at San Francisco International Airport.
Fortunately, there were no injuries, but a car sustained significant damage.
The Federal Aviation Administration is conducting an investigation into the incident.
