Burst tyre forces Air Malta plane to return to base

An Air Malta Boeing 737-300 made a successful emergency landing at Malta International Airport yesterday morning after a tyre in its right undercarriage burst, possibly on take-off.

Flight KM572 left Malta for Moscow's Domododevo airport carrying 122 passengers and six crew at about 6.20 a.m.

Air Malta said that a few minutes after take-off, the pilot reported that one of the aircraft's tyres had lost pressure. An inspection was held immediately on the runway and traces of tyre rubber were found.

It was decided that the plane should return to base and the aircraft circled the island in order to waste fuel as a safety precaution. As an emergency was declared, fire service and airport security vessels were positioned on the apron, close to the spot where it was calculated that the aircraft would land. St Luke's Hospital was also put on alert as a precautionary measure.

The news spread like wildfire and scores of onlookers with short-wave radios and cameras gathered on both sides of the runway to watch the aircraft fly past to allow inspectors on land to take a quick look at the undercarriage.

The B737 then made a circuit and approached the runway from Birzebbuga, successfully landing at about 9 a.m. when the wheels touched the ground in what appeared to be a smooth landing. The damaged tyre, clearly visible from alongside the road to Hal Far, tore to shreds as the aircraft came to standstill close to park eight past the passenger terminal.

The passengers and the crew left the aircraft via the stairs as no evacuation procedure was deemed necessary.

With the situation under control, Air Malta chairman Lawrence Zammit told journalists the aircraft had been directed back home since this was the "best safety precaution to take". He said the landing was extremely successful and the operation was well coordinated.

"This is what the pilots and the emergency services are trained for. In this case, everything was done in the best interest of passengers," Mr Zammit said.

He said the passengers were provided with counselling services and were eventually rerouted on other flights.

Aviation industry sources explained that yesterday's incident was a very common one in the airline business. There have been cases where a burst tyre was only discovered on arrival.

"Tyres are inspected intricately before take-off and changed if necessary. But there are some things which you can't always thwart," the sources said.

They said Air Malta pilots are trained regularly to the highest standards to cope with such emergencies. The crew on yesterday's flight was an experienced one with a total of over 35 years flying experience.

The sources explained that in the case of a burst tyre, a pilot would manoeuvre his aircraft in such a way as to transfer the weight on the other side of the aircraft to ensure a gentle landing.

It is standard procedure for an aircraft to return to base once something irregular crops up.

An aircraft loaded with fuel is considered to be too heavy for landing. The Air Malta aircraft in question does not have the facility to empty its fuel mid-air and so had to burn it in flight before landing.

The emergency operation, involving the Civil Protection Department, Air Malta, the Malta Air Traffic Services, the Department of Civil Aviation, the police and the armed forces, was coordinated by MIA.

An Air Malta aircraft made an emergency landing at Rome's Fiumicino airport last week following a technical hitch in its air-conditioning system.

Flight KM4101, operating a scheduled flight between the Greek Islands and the UK, and carrying 179 passengers and six crew, was cut short as the Airbus A320 aircraft landed safely in Rome in the afternoon. The passengers disembarked through the normal exits.

On February 19, 1992, an Air Malta Airbus A320 had to abort take-off when one of its two nose wheel tyres was damaged as it was about to leave for London. The pilot stopped the aircraft on the runway and the 120 passengers disembarked.

A more serious accident that luckily ended with no casualties occurred on November 15, 1977 when an Air Pakistan Boeing 720B airliner on loan to Air Malta made an emergency landing at Luqa airport with the nose wheel gear missing.

The aircraft, that had been on a "touch and go" training session in the morning, lost its dual-nose wheel landing gear on take-off. Royal Air Force personnel lay a long carpet of foam along the runway to reduce the chances of fire and avoid damage to the aircraft.

The two Pakistani crew and the three Maltese pilot trainees escaped unhurt and the aircraft was only lightly damaged as the pilots successfully delayed the aircraft's nose from touching the ground.