On Sunday, a FlySafair flight scheduled from Johannesburg to Cape Town made an emergency landing back in Johannesburg, after the aircraft lost one of its rear wheels during takeoff.
On Sunday, FlySafair Flight FA212 made an emergency landing at OR Thambo, where it had departed less than three hours earlier en route to Cape Town.
However, as the flight took off, ground staff at OR Tambo reported witnessing damage to one of the aircraft’s rear wheels, writes News24.
“The crew was alerted and the decision was taken to return to Johannesburg,” said Kirby Gordon, FlySafair’s chief marketing officer.
The flight’s course was readjusted back to Johannesburg, entering a ‘holding pattern’ nearby Parys to burn off fuel and lighten the aircraft in preparation for landing – a standard procedure, according to Gordon.
After a low pass over OR Tambo at 1:20 pm for a safety check of the landing gear, the plane made its final landing at 2:06 pm.
The Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) subsequently confirmed that the plane, with a damaged rear wheel, made a safe landing with no incidents reported.
The ACSA went on to acknowledge FlySafair pilots and crew for handling the emergency swiftly and with professionalism.
“Their training and experience ensured that all passengers on board the plane walked away unscathed.”
Upon a safe landing, passengers on board the flight to Cape Town were rerouted to a back-up aircraft, and transported safely to the Mother City.
As per Gordon, the cause of the wheel’s damage is being investigated by technical teams and authorities.
