A United Airlines flight nearly crash-landed at the Orlando International Airport on Sunday (local time) due to what airport authorities described as a “mechanical issue”.
The UAL 2323 flight, operated by an Airbus A320neo, had been scheduled to fly from Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport at 8:55 AM CST (8:25 PM IST) to the Orlando International Airport at 12:35 PM EST (11:05 PM IST).
However, while landing at Orlando, videos show that the aircraft’s back wheels made contact with the ground, but one of the nose wheels (a pair of front wheels) of the flight could be seen detaching from the flight and rolling off.
This gave the flight an unbalanced landing as it tilted again after touchdown, which would have sparked fear inside the flight that had 200 passengers and six crew members, as per a report from the airline. No injuries or casualties were reported.
The airline did not reveal further details on the nature of the mechanical issue.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) also briefly issued a ground stop at the Chicago airport after the scary landing caused it to block the runway. The ground stop notification was later updated to a ground delay, a Fox 35 Orlando report said.
Flights to and from the Orlando airport also experienced some delays, according to the FAA’s National Airspace System Status database.
Reports say that the weather conditions during the landing were also quite poor. It had been quite rainy and cold at the time, with the Orlando International Airport reporting gusty winds of about 87km/h. The Orlando Executive Airport nearby had even reported wind speeds reaching 90km/h, the report added.
However, it is not clear whether the inclement weather had a role to play in the near mishap.
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