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/ CBS Colorado
Passengers on board an American Airlines flight at Denver International Airport Saturday afternoon were evacuated due to an incident with the plane’s landing gear during takeoff, officials confirmed.
The Denver Fire Department said the problem occurred on board American Airlines Flight 3023 from Denver to Miami while the plane was still on the runway. Officials reported that all 173 passengers and six crew members on board the Boeing 737 MAX 8 were safely off the aircraft.
Video posted to Instagram showed passengers evacuating the aircraft using a slide as smoke and flames billowed from below the rear of the plane.
Five people were evaluated at the scene but were not transported for further treatment, the airport confirmed. However, one person was transported to a hospital for medical attention. The airline describe the patient’s injuries as minor.
According to FlightAware, the plane was scheduled to leave Gate C34 at 1:12 p.m. The FAA said a “possible landing gear incident” happened during takeoff from runway 34L around 2:45 p.m.
The passengers were transported to the terminal by bus. The FAA said it is actively investigating the incident.
American Airlines said in a statement that the aircraft “experienced a maintenance issue prior to takeoff” involving one of its tires and has been taken out of service for inspection. Later Saturday evening, the fire department stated that it had extinguished a fire after responding to the aircraft.
The displaced passengers would depart for Miami on a replacement aircraft later Saturday, the airline said.
FlightAware showed at least 306 flights at Denver International Airport had been delayed as of Saturday night. The airport said a ground stop was in place from 2 p.m. until shortly after 3 p.m. for all incoming flights that had not left their departure airports yet. Operations at the airport have since returned to normal.
A separate incident involving an American Airlines aircraft happened at the airport in March when a plane suffered an “engine-related issue” and was diverted to Denver International Airport.
Christa Swanson is a Digital Media Producer at CBS Colorado in Denver.
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