Passengers scream as plane makes hard landing amid Tropical Storm Hilary

28 August 2023 , 06:43

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Firefighters with the Orange County Fire Authority help passengers disembark the Alaska Airlines Flight (Image: Orange County Fire Authority)

An Alaska Airlines flight had to make a hard landing amid a storm sending sparks flying off the plane in front of terrified passengers.

The flight from Seattle to Santa Ana, California, landed in alarming fashion at John Wayne Airport. In a video filmed by a worried passenger, the plane appears to drag its left wing along the tarmac causing sparks to fly.

It landed late on Sunday August 20 as Tropical Storm Hilary lashed the West Coast. In the footage passengers can be heard screaming. "Why are we going so fast?" one person can be heard asking as the plane rapidly descends.

"Brace," someone else shouts in alarm. As the plane lands a loud crunch can be heard which has passengers crying out in terror. As the bright sparks are seen in the night air, one passenger exclaims: "There's sparks outside! Why are there sparks outside?"

Passengers are helped off the plane (Orange County Fire Authority)

Alaska Airlines Flight 1288 after landing in California (Orange County Fire Authority)

A statement from Alaska Airlines admitted the plan "experienced an issue soon after landing" in the storm at 11.15 pm and was “unable to taxi to the gate due to an issue with its landing gear”.

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The statement read: “Our focus is taking care of our guests who were on board, including retrieving their checked bags. We apologise for the inconvenience and appreciate their patience during this situation.

“The safety of our guests and employees is always our primary priority. This incident is a rare occurrence, our flight crews train extensively to safely manage through many scenarios.”

Fire fighters were on hand to help alarmed passengers (Orange County Fire Authority)

A shot from the tarmac in Santa Ana (Orange County Fire Authority)

Thankfully no one was injured. There were 106 passengers and six crew members aboard at the time. They disembarked and were driven by bus to the terminal.

Local firefighters from the Orange County Authority (OCFA) were called to the scene and helped people get off the plane.

"Last night amid the rain and wind our crews were called to John Wayne Airport when a 737 experienced an issue while taxiing to the gate after landing," OCFA said in a statement.

"Fortunately, no one was injured. They were however, stranded. Firefighters worked with airport staff and the pilots to safely get everyone off the plane," the statement continues. "Airport emergencies are just one of the many things OCFA firefighters train on. That joint training with airport staff makes these incidents run smoothly."

Heavy rain, flash flooding, and wind damage battered Mexico and Southern California, as the history-making Tropical Storm Hilary tore through multiple areas.

Tropical Storm Hilary was downgraded to a post-tropical storm by the National Hurricane Center in its early Monday advisory. But despite the weakening status, authorities stressed that the flood threat is not over and additional rainfall is expected.

Charlie Jones