Six people suffered injuries on Saturday afternoon after an American Airlines plane made a “hard landing” at Kahului’s airport. They were taken to a local hospital and were later released.
Hard Landing
A hard landing takes place when a plane hits the ground faster and with greater force than a normal landing. Different factors could cause a hard landing. For instance, it could be that the aircraft’s approach angle is incorrect. Also, there may be changes in the wind while landing. A hard landing can cause injuries.
According to the Federal Aviation Authority, the incident happened at around 2 PM local time when American Airlines Airbus A320 “made a hard landing.” This incident hospitalized five flight attendants and a passenger according to a statement released by the airline. There were 167 passengers and 7 crew on the flight.
The airline said that Flight 271 from Los Angeles International Airport “experienced an issue upon landing.” According to Hawaii News, Maui Police Department medics received a dispatch call at around 2:21 PM.
The Maui airport reported that the flight was scheduled to arrive at 12:47 PM. That was 79 minutes before the actual arrival.
American Airlines confirmed that the plane taxied itself to the gate “under its own power and customers deplaned normally.” However, according to Kahului’s information, the plane was taxied at Los Angeles International Airport for more than an hour. It isn’t clear why it was taxied at LAX for that long. It is also not yet determined whether this delay has anything to do with the hard landing.
Partly Cloudy Weather
Based on data from the National Weather Service, it was partly cloudy and windy in Maui with a temperature of around 80 degrees when the incident happened. After the incident, American Airlines took the plane out of service and is currently undergoing inspection.
American Airlines said in a statement, “The safety of our customers and team members is our top priority.” The FAA is currently investigating the incident.
