United Airlines Boeing 757 flight loses wheel during takeoff

On Monday, during takeoff from Los Angeles International Airport, a US airline’s Boeing aircraft lost one of its landing gear wheels.

The United Airlines aircraft, which was carrying 174 passengers and 7 crew members, made a safe landing in Denver, the intended destination, after the fright. No casualties were recorded.

In a video, the tire can be seen falling to the ground shortly after takeoff and separating from the aircraft’s undercarriage. United Airlines released a statement after the incident saying, “We are investigating what caused this event, and the wheel has been recovered in Los Angeles.”

The aircraft in question was a Boeing 757-200, which was almost thirty years old, according to FlightRadar24 data. For United Airlines, this is the second incident of this kind this year.

Boeing has also agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud conspiracy charge and pay a fine of $243.6 million to resolve an investigation into two fatal Boeing 737 MAX crashes.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) announced this resolution in a court filing on July 7. This deal helps the embattled aerospace company avoid a potentially damaging public trial as it seeks to recover from a series of safety and manufacturing issues.