A United Airlines Boeing 777-200ER made an emergency landing at Washington Dulles Airport, a few minutes after taking off for Tokyo, due to a technical defect in the engine.
According to the airline, flight UA 803 was forced to immediately return to the airport of departure after a loss of power was detected in one of the engines. The aircraft landed safely and no injuries were reported among the 275 passengers and 15 crew members.
"Shortly after takeoff, flight UA 803 returned to Washington Dulles Airport where the aircraft landed safely after experiencing a loss of power in one of its engines," the airline said, adding that no injuries were reported among the 275 passengers and 15 crew members.
United Airlines apologized to passengers for the unexpected return, explaining that the plane would undergo technical checks and repairs before resuming the flight. Passengers are expected to be transported to their final destination, Haneda Airport in Tokyo, on another plane.
According to a spokesman for Dulles Airport, the largest in the US capital, the plane had taken off around 12:20 p.m. and that during the incident a fire was reported in vegetation near the runway, which was quickly extinguished by fire services. The plane returned and landed safely around 1:30 p.m., being later inspected by the relevant authorities.
The affected runway was closed for a short period, but due to the number of runways available, there was no impact on other flights.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed that the plane's return was caused by an engine failure during takeoff and announced that it has launched an investigation to determine the causes of the incident.
