A Boeing 737 returned to Japan’s Fukuoka Airport on Friday, forced to make an emergency landing after an apparent wing flap “irregularity.”
The United Airlines flight was on its way to Guam when the incident occurred, the Mainichi reported on Friday. Authorities said no one among the 50 passengers and crew was hurt, and reportedly, there was no fire.
“The police are investigating the incident, with an irregularity in a wing flap reported,” the newspaper said, adding that the runway was closed temporarily so officials could perform safety checks.
Following those checks, the runway was reopened.
Video footage reportedly shows the plane coming in for its emergency landing:
Japonya’nın Fukuoka Havalimanı'ndan kalkan United Airlines'a ait bir yolcu uçağı, "flap" arızası nedeniyle havalimanına dönerek acil iniş yaptı.
— Yeni Journal (@yenijournal) May 10, 2024
Yolcu ve mürettebattan yaralanan olmadı. pic.twitter.com/rkcWrmwUSm
The news comes as Boeing faces controversy over safety issues. On Wednesday, a Boeing plane skidded off a runway in Senegal while approximately 85 passengers were on board, Breitbart News reported.
Ten people were injured and several were listed in serious condition after being taken to a hospital. The plane eventually came to a halt in the grass and dirt just off the runway:
🚨🇸🇳BOEING SKIDS OFF RUNWAY IN SENEGAL - MULTIPLE INJURIES
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) May 9, 2024
The day after a Boeing crash landed in Istanbul, the company was hit with another PR disaster after a 737 overran the runway at Dakar International Airport.
The left-wing and engine were seriously damaged, and all 73… https://t.co/h0AlSl2NpJ pic.twitter.com/DyG3p2G03Z
Similarly, a Boeing whistleblower recently claimed he was chided for slowing production after he found defects in plane parts when he worked as a quality inspector at Spirit AeroSystems in Kansas.
Santiago Paredes also alleged leadership pressured him not to be so meticulous in his work.
“They just wanted the product shipped out. They weren’t focused on the consequences of shipping bad fuselages. They were just focused on meeting the quotas, meeting the schedule, meeting the budget… If the numbers looked good, the state of the fuselages didn’t really matter,” he said.
Congress summoned Boeing CEO David Calhoun amid additional whistleblower claims and safety issues, Breitbart News reported on April 10. In March, Calhoun said he was going to retire by the close of 2024.
“His departure comes amid the single biggest safety crisis for Boeing since crashes of two of its Max 8 jets in 2018 and 2019,” the outlet said.
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