DENVER — A Southwest Airlines flight departing from Denver International Airport (DIA) was forced to make an emergency landing after a tire burst during takeoff, prompting fears of a disaster among passengers. However, their terror turned to praise for the pilot who managed to land the plane safely. Southwest Flight 225, bound for Phoenix on Monday evening, carried 137 passengers.
According to FlightAware, the plane took off from DIA at 6:31 p.m., shortly before many passengers were startled by a loud noise.
“It was like a loud pop, which we later found out was the tire blowing out. But at the time, we kind of had no idea like, did we run over something?” said Julianna Donadio, a passenger on the flight heading to visit her mother in Phoenix. Southwest Airlines confirmed that the tire had failed, leading the pilots to declare an emergency landing.
Audio obtained by 9NEWS from Live Air Traffic reveals the pilot informed air traffic control about the uncertain extent of the damage and requesting firetrucks on the runway, prompting an emergency declaration. > Below: Southwest Flight 255 emergency landing Air Traffic Control-Pilot audio Donadio described the ensuing chaos in the cabin, explaining that the tire blowout had compromised the hydraulic system. “All of a sudden, we saw the flight attendants run.
.. turning all the lights on inside the plane and them saying we might have an emergency landing and we have to brace for a crash,” she said this is the moment she kee.