A United Airlines Boeing 757-224 (tail number N14107) landed safely in Denver on Monday after losing a main landing gear wheel during takeoff from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), officials said.
United Flight 1001, bound for Denver with 174 passengers and seven crew members, departed LAX around 9 a.m. local time when one of its rear landing gear wheels detached, according to The Aviation Herald and CBS News.
Other pilots alerted air traffic controllers about the incident after witnessing a tire coming off from the aircraft on take-off.
The flight crew declared an emergency on approach to Denver International Airport. Passengers were instructed to brace for landing, but the aircraft touched down safely on Runway 34L just before 11 a.m. local time.
Passenger Allen Stubblefield told CBS News the takeoff felt normal, but halfway through the flight, the pilot announced they would be making an emergency landing in Denver.
“It was not the smoothest landing and I didn’t expect that,” Stubblefield said. “There was a bump, but that was it.”
No injuries were reported among passengers or crew members.
United Airlines confirmed the wheel has been recovered in Los Angeles. “We are investigating what caused this event,” the airline said in a statement to ABC News.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will also investigate the incident.
This event follows a similar occurrence in March when a United Airlines Boeing 777 lost a tire shortly after takeoff from San Francisco International Airport, crushing a car in an employee parking lot.
Boeing 757 aircraft are designed to land safely even if they lose a tire, according to previous statements from United Airlines regarding similar incidents.
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