Alaska Airlines Repairs Embraer E175 After Tire Blows Out And Damages Electrical Equipment In Eugene, Oregon
Passengers onboard a recent Alaska Airlines flight were treated to a go-around after the crew noted an unsafe gear indication. The flight, operating as AS3352 by Skywest Airlines, had departed from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and was en route to Eugene, Oregon (EUG). The aircraft, an Embraer ERJ-175, had descended through the clouds to 1,300 feet mean sea level when the pilot decided to initiate the go-around due to an unsafe gear indication, and the other crew onboard worked through other safety checklists. On approach, all passengers were told to brace for landing and were able to arrive on the ground, unharmed, 20 minutes later.
Photo: Robin Guess | Shutterstock
The Federal Aviation Administration has reported on the incident, making this statement:
"Aircraft had blown tire that damaged electrical wires and paneling associated with the landing gear."
On Tuesday, July 2nd, the SkyWest-operated flight was scheduled to depart from Los Angeles at 08:26 that morning. After a brief delay, the aircraft returned from the gate at 08:37. The flight taxied through the busy airport and took off from runway 25R. The usual flight time on the service is around one hour and 45 minutes.
The aircraft headed north, climbing to its cruising altitude of 34,000 feet. It passed over Fresno and traveled along the Sierra Nevada mountain range. Commencing its descent once it had crossed into the skies above the state of Oregon, the Embraer ERJ-175 slowly descended before encountering the unsafe gear.
Photo: Robin Guess | Shutterstock
With the flight descending to 1,300 feet, the pilot decided to initiate the go-around, and the aircraft quickly ascended to 3,700 feet as it flew southwesterly to recommence its approach into Eugene. Passengers were instructed to brace for landing and arrived on runway 34L unharmed 20 minutes after their initial approach, landing at 10:45 local time.
The aircraft at the center of the drama was a 6.1-year-old SkyWest aircraft operating on behalf of Alaska Airlines. According to ch-Aviation, an online aviation database, the aircraft first entered commercial service on June 2, 2018. It is configured with 16 business and 64 economy class seats and is powered by two General Electric CF34-8E engines. During its testing stages with Embraer, it held the Brazilian registration PR-ENY.
Photo: Ian Dewar Photography | Shutterstock
Data from Flightradar24 identified that the aircraft remained in Eugene for immediate inspection and did not depart the Oregon airport until July 4. The aircraft then operated as AS9794 at 12:09, destined for San Francisco, where it landed at 13:18. From here, it remained overnight at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) for further inspection before recommending back into regular servicing from July 5. Since then, no additional issues have been reported with the aircraft.