Passengers have revealed their terror after an aeroplane carrying 230 people was forced into an emergency landing at an airport following a catastrophic equipment failure.
The pilot was forced to bring the Boeing 767 in to land at Warsaw airport with no wheels after all its landing gear failed. The aircraft skidded along the tarmac on its belly, sparks flying, and a fire broke out in the starboard engine before it came to a halt.
Incredibly nobody on the flight, which came from Newark, New Jersey, was injured but after disembarking passengers spoke of their alarm.
‘I was praying for the pilot not to lose control because we started to make circles over the airport. It was terrible,’ said passenger Teresa Kowalik.We owe everything to the pilot. He really did a great job.’
The pilot told passengers four hours into the flight that the plane faced technical problems said a passenger who only gave her first name, Malgorzata.
‘The pilot addressed us a number of times and said we should follow instructions. Later, a flight attendant said there might be a fire, and at that point people began to get nervous and uncertain,’ she said.
The landing was not especially hard but the situation became alarming when sparks and black smoke rose from the plane, said Krzysztof Rozycki,