A United Express flight operated by ExpressJet blew out its main landing gear tires while landing at Newark Airport on Sunday night.
The ExpressJet Embraer ERJ-135 (N12142) operating as United Flight 4480 was arriving from Rochester, NY when it “experienced four blown tires shortly after landing,” the airline told NYCAviation in a statement.
“The crew safely brought the aircraft to a stop, and all eight passengers safely deplaned and were bused to the terminal,” said ExpressJet spokesperson Allison Curtin.
WABC also reported that the five crewmembers onboard were unharmed.
One report also said that the plane had skidded off the runway, but LiveATC.net audio of the incident indicated that the plane merely got stuck on the runway due to its blown tires.
It was not yet clear if weather played any role in the incident, but the plane may have encountered slightly gusty conditions under mostly clear skies at the 8:24 pm accident time. Newark’s 7:51 pm METAR reported winds out of 300 degrees at 13 knots and gusting to 20 knots. The 8:51 pm METAR measured winds out of 310 degrees at 15 knots gusting to 23 knots.
The incident marked the culmination of a rough Sunday for United, which also included an employee getting hit by a baggage cart at Newark and a plane rolling into a fuel truck in Buffalo.
