However, today has been a day of incredible co-incidence as not one but two major uncontained failures occurred over populated areas.
United Boeing 777 engine failure
Talking to the Denver departure controllers as recorded by LiveATC.net, the pilot of United 328 said,
“United 328 heavy, we’ve experienced an engine failure we need a turn. Mayday. Mayday. United 328 Heavy. Mayday. Mayday. Denver Departure United 328 Heavy, Mayday aircraft just expereinced an engine failure, we need to turn immediately.”
According to the airline, the Boeing 777 had 231 passengers on board, accompanied by ten members of crew. According to data from RadarBox.com, the aircraft has been busy throughout the past year, completing 2184.5 hours over 530 flights in the past 12 months.
Debris fell in front yards
On the incident, a United Airlines spokesperson said:
“Flight 328 from Denver to Honolulu experienced an engine failure shortly after departure, returned safely to Denver and was met by emergency crews as a precaution. There are no reported injuries onboard, and we will share more information as it becomes available.”
Boeing 747 Engine Parts Rain Down On Dutch Village After Engine Fire
A cargo plane departing Maastricht Aachen Airport (MST) lost metal parts as it took off to its New York destination. It appears that these fragments came from an engine failure, with sources noting that the aircraft involved is a Boeing 747-400.
Sources also report that some people on the ground have been slightly injured while various cars and property were damaged as a result of the fragments coming down. The aircraft was diverted to Liege.
The following statement was given by the firm operating the 747:
“Shortly after departure the crew noticed an engine issue, and followed the correct procedures to investigate the problem. Resulting from this, the decision was made, with air traffic approval, to divert to Liege Airport, Belgium, where it landed safely.”
What we know so far
According to Dutch website Up in the Sky, the flight involved was LGT5504 with a Boeing 747-400 freighter operated by Longtail Aviation.
Taking off at around 16:10 CET, flight LGT5504 was bound for New York. However, due to losing an engine, the aircraft diverted. Flying on three engines, the 747 headed to nearby Liège (LGG) in Belgium, flying at an altitude of 10,000 feet.
Video taken and posted to Twitter shows the 747 emitting smoke above the skies of Meerssen – less than three kilometers from the Maastricht Aachen Airport runway.
NOS.nl reports that pieces of metal came down from the aircraft in the Meerssen area, adding that two people were hit by the debris, sustaining minor injuries. A woman was sent to the hospital with a head injury.
Additionally, cars and homes were damaged, but at this point, the extent of the damage is unknown. Photos posted to Twitter also give us a closer view of the fragments and the damage they caused to vehicles.
OMG! That is scary! And add a hailstorm to the mix… It’s the apocalypse! More information on Simple Flying.
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Parts made in China?
Well maybe a heavy metal roof isn’t such a bad idea after all?
yeah! 🙂
Maybe a squadron of 777’s should do a test flight over DC, and shake out some more burned out engines?
Sheeesh, they’re all trapped in there behind non-scalable fence with razor wire.