Malawi Airlines plane in scary touchdown
By Pilirani Kachinziri:
Malawi Airlines plane ET 020 carrying Vice-President, Saulos Chilima, had a frightening touchdown at OR Tambo International Airport in South Africa Monday morning.
No casualties were reported.
One of the sources, who was on board, said the plane failed to release its tyres as it touched down and landed on its belly.
The source said the plane was stuck on the runway for almost one hour.
However, Malawi Airlines Public Relations Officer, Joseph Josiah, dismissed reports that the plane landed on its belly and that it had problems with its landing gear.
“The truth of the matter is that the flight had normal landing at OR Tambo International Airport. However, upon touchdown, the captain of the flight realised that one of the plane’s tyres deflated during normal breaking.
“As a precaution, the captain decided not to proceed with taxing to the Terminal Parking Bay but opted to have passengers disembark on the runway. All passengers disembarked with no incident,” states the release issued Monday.
It further states that the deflated tyre was replaced and there turn flight operated, albeit with a two-hour delay.
The airline says it is investigating the cause of the tyre deflation.
The airline has since apologised to its passengers for the inconvenience.
Malawi Airlines is the national flag carrier of Malawi.
It is a registered partnership company with a shareholding between the Malawi Government (51 percent) and Ethiopian Airlines (49 percent).
Malawi Airlines operates B737-700 and Q400 aircrafts with direct flights to regional cities of Johannesburg, Lusaka (Zambia), Harare (Zimbabwe) and Dar es Salaam (Tanzania), besides domestic flights between Lilongwe and Blantyre.
The airline was established in July 2013.
A vibrant writer who gives a great insight on hot topics and issues
