A United Airlines flight aborted takeoff after one of its engines caught fire, temporarily halting arrivals at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport amid busy Memorial Day travel.

The incident, reported on Monday, was captured in a dramatic video from the tarmac featuring smoke gushing out from one of the wings, the New York Post reported.

The United Flight 2091 was about to take off from the airport at around 2 PM (local time) when an engine of the Airbus A320 caught fire, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed.

It was expected to fly to Seattle when the engine burst into flames on the taxiway, forcing 148 passengers on board and five crew members to evacuate as the plane was towed back to a gate, the FAA and the airlines have stated in separate statements.

The FAA noted that an engine of the plane caught fire, while the airline only described it as “an issue with the engine.” 

“The fire department and medical personnel met the aircraft out of an abundance of caution,” CNN quoted United officials as saying. They added that no injuries were reported.

This incident forced the FAA to temporarily halt arrivals at the busy Chicago airport, while regular operations started at around 2:45 PM (local time).

A video, reportedly shot by a passenger from inside the plane, shows thick smoke coming out from one of the wings of the plane as it ran on the tarmac.

????BREAKING: United Airlines flight aborts takeoff after an engine catches fire at Chicago O’Hare International Airport.
pic.twitter.com/h1s2o8JDMu

— The Worldview Monitor (@WorldviewFeed) May 28, 2024

The person, who took the video, has claimed that he heard an explosion just when the plane was about to take off.

“I felt the impact on my window. As I looked, the engine was on fire and smoke was coming out,” the passenger told a publication.

The airline, in its statement, further said that the engine issue was “immediately addressed” by first responders, adding that all the passengers onboard were deplaned “normally”.

“We are working to make alternative travel arrangements for customers,” it stated.

Damaged cars are seen in an on-airport employee parking lot after tire debris from a Boeing 777 landed on them at San Francisco International Airport, Thursday, March 7, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AP

A United Airlines jetliner bound for Japan made a safe landing in Los Angeles on Thursday after losing a tire while taking off from San Francisco.

Video shows the plane losing one of the six tires on its left-side main landing gear assembly seconds after takeoff. The tire landed in an employee parking lot at San Francisco International Airport, where it smashed into a car and shattered its back window before breaking through a fence and coming to stop in a neighboring lot.

No one was injured, airport spokesman Doug Yakel said in a statement.

Fire engines stood by at Los Angeles International Airport but weren’t needed, as the Boeing 777 made an uneventful landing and stopped about two-thirds of the way down a runway. Airport spokesman Dae Levine said the plane landed safely.

It was then towed away.

The flight carried 235 passengers and a crew of 14, United said. The airline said that the plane, built in 2002, was designed to land safely with missing or damaged tires. The passengers will be moved to another plane for the rest of the trip, United said.

Boeing 777s have six tires on each of the two main landing gears. Video of Flight 35 departing shows the plane losing one of the six tires on its left-side main landing gear assembly seconds after takeoff.

‘Rare instance’

Aviation experts said planes losing tires is a rare occurrence and not indicative of a larger safety issue.

“In aviation, we never want to have single points of failure if they can be avoided, and this is a case in point,” said Alan Price, a former chief pilot for Delta Air Lines.

“The remaining tires are fully capable of handling the load,” he added.

Price said a loose tire is normally a maintenance issue and not a problem created by the manufacturer.

John Cox, a retired pilot and professor of aviation safety at the University of Southern California, agreed. “I don’t see any impact for Boeing as it was a United maintenance team that changed the tire,” he said.

The Federal Aviation Administration will investigate, spokesman Tony Molinaro said.

Los Angeles, United States:

A Boeing 777 jetliner bound for Japan had to make an emergency landing shortly after takeoff Thursday, after a wheel fell off and plunged into an airport parking lot.

Video posted online shows the wheel dropping seconds after the United Airlines plane gets off the ground at San Francisco International Airport.

The wheel bounced into a car park used by airport employees, the local KRON4 outlet reported, with airport officials saying several cars were damaged.

United flight UA35 diverted to Los Angeles today after losing a wheel on takeoff Via @FlightEmergency

View #UA35‘s data at
https://t.co/F63EfWkMANpic.twitter.com/0bSSQE6UKu

— RadarBox (@RadarBoxCom) March 7, 2024

United Airlines said there were 249 people on board the Osaka-bound jet.

Boeing has faced a series of quality control issues, most recently in a hair-raising incident in January when a door-sized panel of a Boeing 737 Max 9 blew off the fuselage after the plane took off in Portland, Oregon.

No one was seriously hurt in the incident, which triggered a 19-day emergency grounding of all Boeing 737 Max 9s.  

US regulators last week gave Boeing 90 days to come up with a plan addressing quality control issues, with the FAA chief saying the company must “commit to real and profound improvements.”

The Boeing 777 has six wheels on each of its main landing struts and is designed to land safely if some are missing or damaged, United said.

The flight was diverted to Los Angeles where it landed safely.

Passengers were expected to be on their way again later Thursday, the airline said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New York, United States:

United Airlines briefly halted plane departures Tuesday due to a “systemwide technology issue” before fixing the problem and lifting the ground stop.

The big US carrier told AFP in a 1730 GMT email that it was holding all aircraft at their departure airports, while airborne flights would continue to their destination.

Notices on the Federal Aviation Administration cited an “equipment outage” behind the ground stop order.

But United said around 1800 GMT that the ground stop order had been lifted.

“We have identified a fix for the technology issue and flights have resumed,” United said on X, the former Twitter platform. “We’re working with impacted customers to help them reach their destinations as soon as possible.”

The Federal Aviation Administration said it was asked by United to pause departures nationwide. The first announcement was posted to the FAA page at 1633 GMT.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)