(CNN) The Federal Aviation Administration reports that more than 150 people on an American Airlines flight leaving Denver International Airport on Saturday were evacuated onto the runway following a potential landing gear malfunction that resulted in one person being hurt and a fire.
According to American Airlines and Denver International Airport, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 had a maintenance problem with an aircraft tire before takeoff. The Denver Fire Department and airport emergency personnel responded to the problem, and the passengers were evacuated on the runway.
At Denver International Airport, the sixth busiest airport in the world, the evacuation is the most recent in a series of concerning aviation events. When one of American Airlines’ engines caught fire in March, dozens of passengers were compelled to stand on the wing as the plane was evacuated. After a month, a United Airlines aircraft struck an animal on takeoff and caught fire.
The aircraft was carrying 173 passengers and six staff members when it took off for Miami International Airport on Saturday. The passengers were evacuated on a slide attached to the aircraft when they heard a loud noise and spotted flames.
According to American Airlines, a brake fire was put out by the Denver Fire Department as a result of ruptured tires and the plane’s descent during braking.
The airplane was taken out of service so that our maintenance team could check it after all passengers and crew safely disembarked. The airline stated it apologized to its passengers for their experience and thanked its team members for their professionalism.
According to the airport and airline, five people were assessed on the spot, while one person was assessed at a gate and transported to the hospital with a minor injury.
According to FlightAware, the plane was supposed to leave the gate at 1:12 p.m. local time. The FAA said that the incident happened at approximately 2:45 p.m. As of Saturday night, 240 planes departing from Denver International Airport were delayed, according to FlightAware data.
The airline said a replacement jet will take passengers to Miami later today. The event is being looked into by the FAA.
The evacuation occurs one day after a terrifying incident involving Southwest Airlines customers. Flightradar24, a website that tracks aircraft flights, reports that a privately owned Hawker Hunter fighter jet flew less than two miles ahead of a Boeing 737 within a few hundred feet of its altitude.
A loud blast was heard by the passengers during the traumatic event.A 17-year-old Minturn, Colorado, passenger named Shay Armistead described Saturday’s experience as quite traumatic. She was traveling to Santiago, Chile, for a ski vacation with her club team.
According to Armistead, passengers thought the tire had popped when they heard a huge noise as the plane flew down the runway.
She told CNN that the plane began to shake and vibrate violently. We began to tilt to the left of the runway, and then we heard the wind as they applied the brakes with a forceful thud.
Margaret Gustafson, 16, Armistead’s teammate, who was seated a few seats down, claimed to have a clear view out the window and noticed the maintenance problem.
Gustafson claimed that when she noticed flames emerging from beneath the aircraft, she realized something was up.
“I started completely freaking out at that point,” she added.
Gustafson heard a loud boom, but she couldn’t tell where it was coming from.
According to Gustafson, several of us simply believed we struck something before we began to veer sharply on the runway. Since neither of us fully understood what was happening, I personally took the hand of the friend in front of me.
There was a great deal of panic among the passengers during the frightening period.
“We’re all going to die,” said one of the passengers, Armistead added. There was a lot of fear because another traveler was not sitting down and participating.
According to Armistead, passengers waited in line at the rear of the aircraft before sliding down the slide. She said that the entire evacuation process took roughly ten to fifteen minutes.
The colleagues’ flight was rescheduled for tomorrow morning, despite the fact that their plans for a ski trip were interrupted.
