A plane lost a wheel upon landing forcing several flights to circle the airport while dangerously low on fuel.
Around 14 flights were affected as the runway had to be closed for an hour and 40 minutes.
Three planes repeatedly sent mayday distress signals as they circled the airport on low fuel.
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The T’way Air aircraft encountered wheel detachment while landing at Taoyuan International Airport in Taiwan at 3.52pm yesterday (8 Feb).
Flight TW687 was arriving from Jeju Island in South Korea.
A passenger said they saw the wheel rolling away as they taxied along the runway.
The faulty landing gear left debris on the tarmac and the airport authorities decided to close the north runway to carry out a clean-up operation.
Japan Airlines Flight JL8671, which landed shortly after the T’way Air plane, was delayed by an hour while waiting on a taxiway for the debris to be cleared.
For nearly two hours, only the south runway was available for take-offs and landings.
Two EVA Air planes were the first to issue mayday alerts due to low fuel followed by a Hong Kong Airlines flight.
The latter issued a total of three mayday warnings due to the severity of the fuel situation.
The airport authority confirmed that all three landed safely, as reported by Need To Know.
According to reports, 14 flights were affected by the delay, eight arrivals and six departures.
No injuries were reported.
An investigation into the cause of the Boeing 737-800’s wheel detachment is ongoing.
T’way Air, formerly Hansung Airlines, is a South Korean low-cost airline based in the capital Seoul.
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