This afternoon, the Air Canada Boeing 767-300ER (C-GHOZ) aircraft took off from Madrid to Toronto at 14:57. The plane was to operate flight AC837, on the route Madrid - Toronto, and there were 130 passengers on board.
On the ascent, the tire of one of the wheels on the left leg of the landing gear exploded. A piece of rubber was pulled in the left engine, which led to its failure. And witnesses saw flames coming out of the engine. In aviation it is called flameout.
Following the incident, the pilots announced the control tower intending to return to Madrid airport. Taking into account the problems of the plane, the left engine damaged and the front wheelless wheel, the pilots had to keep the plane in flight for 4-5 hours to consume much of the fuel. This was done at a low altitude of about 2500 meters altitude, far from the inhabited areas.
While the plane was flying for fuel, a F18 military aircraft belonging to the Spanish Air Force approached for visual inspection and escort.
From the flight of #aircanada pic.twitter.com/g1Qbpr9EUg
- Carlos Castañeda (@ CarlosC97620547) February 3, 2020
LIVE Boeing 767-300ER Air Canada in Madrid
The moment of landing of the Boeing 767-300ER Air Canada
In the end, the aircraft landed safely at Barajas International Airport - Madrid where dozens of ambulances and fire engines were ready to intervene.
Boeing 767-300ER (C-GHOZ) Air Canada is 31 years old. He operated the first flight on March 31, 1989. He flew to Varig, an airline in Brazil. Arrived in the Air Canada fleet 15 years ago.