A small passenger aircraft executed an emergency landing at Boston’s Logan International Airport (BOS) with only one set of landing gear deployed.
The incident occurred on the afternoon of September 17, 2024. The small twin-engine Cape Air Cessna 402 took off from Boston Logan International Airport (BOS) at 14:22 local time and was heading for Hancock County–Bar Harbor Airport (BHB) in Trenton, Maine.
However, according to an official from Massport, the operator of BOS Airport, the aircraft “had a landing gear issue” shortly after take off and was forced to return. There were two passengers and one crew member onboard the Cessna 402.
Video footage shared on X the same day shows the aircraft slowly descending into BOS with only one wheel deployed.
Despite the landing gear failure, the pilot managed to land safely at BOS Airport at around 15:20 local time. The pilot seemed to work hard to keep the aircraft steady until one wing finally touched the runway. No injuries were reported, and all three passengers managed to exit the aircraft on their own.
Commercial pilot Patrick Smith spoke to WBZ news on September 17, 2024, and said that gear problems like this are incredibly rare.
He added: “The technique here on touchdown would be to keep the plane up on the existing landing gear as long as possible. That’s not easy to do once you run out of speed.”
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has launched an investigation into the incident.