Another Boeing scare on an airplane crowded with passengers 30,000 feet high.
A Delta Air Lines flight from Atlanta to Seattle was diverted to Salt Lake City as a precaution on Monday, after an indicator warning of a possible problem with one of the Boeing 757’s engines.
A Delta spokesman told FOX News that Flight 2123 “landed safely without incident and taxied to the gate without assistance” at Salt Lake City International Airport.
“We are working to re-accommodate customers on a later flight,” added the airline. “We apologize for the delay and any inconvenience.”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that 128 people were on board the Boeing 757 and that no injuries were reported.
PRELIMINARY NTSB INVESTIGATION IN UNITED FLIGHT WITH EXPLOSION ENGINE REVEALS DAMAGE TO THE FAN BLADE
The emergency landing comes just days after an explosion in the air forced a Boeing 777 plane traveling from Denver to Honolulu to make an emergency landing.
After its right engine failed and burst into flames, United Flight 328 lost altitude quickly and threw huge chunks of the engine housing and chunks of fiberglass into the northern Colorado neighborhoods below. Authorities said no injuries were reported among the 231 passengers and 10 crew members on board the plane or on the ground where the wreckage fell.
An investigation of the incident by the National Transportation Safety Board is underway.
FAA REQUIRES EMERGENCY INSPECTION OF THE BOEING 777S SELECTED AFTER RIPPED MEDIA EXPLOSION ENGINE FOR PARTS
On Sunday, federal aviation administrator Steve Dickson ordered the agency’s aviation security experts to issue an Emergency Airworthiness Directive, requiring “immediate or intensified inspections of Boeing 777 planes equipped with certain Pratt & Whitney PW4000 engines”.
Boeing recommended “suspending the operations of the 69 777s in service and 59 in storage with Pratt & Whitney 4000-112 engines until the FAA identifies the appropriate inspection protocol.”
Pratt & Whitney added in a statement that it is “actively coordinating with operators and regulators to support the revised inspection interval for the Pratt & Whitney PW4000 engines that power Boeing 777 aircraft”.
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United Airlines, the only operator in the United States with the type of engine in its fleet, said it would land the affected planes immediately.
“Starting immediately and very cautiously, we are voluntarily and temporarily removing 24 Boeing 777 aircraft with Pratt & Whitney 4000 engines from our schedule,” a United spokesman told FOX News in a statement. “As we switch aircraft, we expect only a small number of customers to be disturbed.”
In addition to its 24 active aircraft, United has an additional 28 Boeing 777s stored.
“Safety remains our highest priority – for our employees and customers,” added the spokesman. “That’s why our pilots and flight attendants participate in extensive training to prepare and manage incidents like United flight 328. And we remain proud of their professionalism and unwavering dedication to safety in our daily operations and when emergencies like this occur. “
The FAA said it was also aware that the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau instructed operators equipped with this type of engine to stop flying in Japan until further notice. A Japan Airlines flight taking off from Okinawa’s Naha airport to Tokyo’s Haneda airport made an emergency landing due to a similar problem with the Boeing 777 engine in December.