The Federal Aviation Administration is conducting an investigation into a United Airlines flight that experienced a tire loss during takeoff from San Francisco International Airport. The incident resulted in damage to multiple cars in a parking lot before the aircraft successfully landed at Los Angeles International Airport, as stated by the agency.
According to Doug Yakel, a spokesperson for San Francisco International Airport, the aircraft “lost a portion of landing gear tire during takeoff” at approximately 11:35 a.m. on Thursday as it was departing for Osaka, Japan, as reported by CNN. United Airlines confirmed that the plane lost a single tire after takeoff.
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Yakel mentioned that the tire debris fell into an employee parking lot at the airport. Although several cars were damaged, there were no reports of injuries, he confirmed.
United Airlines informed CNN that Flight 35, carrying 249 passengers and crew, was redirected to Los Angeles and landed shortly after 1:20 p.m. The airline is making arrangements for a new aircraft for those affected.
An American Airlines pilot, upon being informed of the incident, can be heard asking air traffic control, “do you guys know where that tire went?” This occurred as other flights were redirected, as captured in audio by LiveATC.net.
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The controller replied, “No, so it’s probably going to be a few minutes for you guys,” indicating that they did not have immediate information on the tire's location.
United Airlines identified the aircraft as a Boeing 777-200. According to United, the aircraft is equipped with six tires on each of its two main landing gear struts. Additionally, it was designed to safely land even in the event of missing or damaged tires.
Yakel stated that the runway at San Francisco International Airport was temporarily closed to remove debris but has since been reopened. He also mentioned that there were no further disruptions to airport operations.
