In the latest string of safety scares for the aerospace giant Boeing, a jetliner taking off from Los Angeles lost a wheel Monday (July 8).
United Airlines, which operated the Boeing 757-200, stated the plane lost the wheel after departing from Los Angeles International Airport but landed safely in Denver, its intended destination.
The Boeing 757-200 was carrying 174 passengers and 7 crewmembers.
The wheel was recovered in Los Angeles, and we are further investigating what caused this event,” the airline said in a statement.
However, no injuries were reported from the ground or the 174 passengers and seven crew members on board.
Notably, it was the second time in recent times that a United Airlines airplane lost a wheel after taking off.
Earlier in March, a Boeing 777 bound for Japan had a tire fall off after takeoff from San Francisco airport. The aircraft had to make an emergency landing.
Boeing pleads guilty in US fraud case
Meanwhile, Boeing on Monday agreed to be held responsible to fraud in a settlement with the US Department of Justice over two fatal 737 MAX crashes.
This year, Boeing’s 737 MAX faced fresh safety concerns after an Alaska Airlines flight in January experienced a critical failure – a blown-out fuselage door plug.
The charge relate to two 737 MAX crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia over a five-month period in 2018 and 2019 that killed 346 people prompted the families of the victims to demand that Boeing face prosecution.
“The 757-200 aircraft that took off on Monday was first delivered 30 years ago in 1994,” said a Boeing spokesperson in an email.
Production of the 757 model was discontinued in 2004.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is investigating Monday’s incident.
Regulator orders Boeing inspections after oxygen mask concerns
US aviation regulators on Monday said that thousands of Boeing 737 airplanes would need to be examined, amid concerns that oxygen masks could fail in emergencies.
“The operators are to check the oxygen originator and perform proper actions, if needed, within 120 to 150 days,” the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said in a statement.
The airworthiness directive by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) comes into effect immediately and affects more than 2,600 US-registered airplanes.