NTSB investigating plane landing without nose gear at CLT Airport

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) - A airplane dealing with mechanical issues landed at Charlotte-Douglas International Airport on Wednesday morning.

According to the airport, Delta Airlines Flight 1092 landed around 8:40 a.m. on Runway 36 Left. Photos provided by passengers show the plane landed without the nose gear.

The airplane has been removed from the runway, which was closed for hours while crews worked to remove it. Nobody was injured in the incident and passengers were bussed to a terminal.

A passenger on the plane said via text that they were allowed to leave, but nothing was allowed off the plane - no suitcases or carry-ons.

He said they were told the Federal Aviation Administration has a hold on the plane so nothing can move on it or from it. The passenger added he was headed to a work meeting in an Uber with no wallet.

“Just so thankful and just a big smile on my face that I was able to hear my wife, my mom, and my kids,” said passenger Gary Gibbs.

A relieved Gibbs said there were anxious moments as Flight 1092 approached the runway, and described the moment it touched down.

“We came to a full stop,” Gibbs said. “There was some smoke in the cabin so that was a little bit concerning, but the flight attendants did well. The pilot came on with his instructions that we would be exiting, and so we all exited safely.”

Another passenger recorded the moment the flight landed at the airport. The plane can be heard hitting the runway and sliding to a stop.

Delta said two pilots, three flight attendants and 96 customers were aboard the plane when it landed.

In a tweet, the National Transportation Safety Board said it is investigating the runway landing without the plane’s nose gear extended.

Following the emergency landing, Delta released the statement below:

“Nothing is more important than the safety of our customers and employees. While this was a rare occurrence, Delta flight crews train extensively to safely manage through many scenarios and flight 1092 landed safely without reported injuries. Our focus is now to take care of our customers on this flight, including retrieving their bags and seeing them to their final destinations safely. We apologize to our customers for what they experienced.”

The plane arrived in Charlotte after taking off from Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta.

According to FlightAware, more than 220 flights have been delayed already on Wednesday, and at least 31 have been canceled.

WBTV found four incidents involving landing gear failure in the United States in the last three years among commercial air carriers. The most recent nose landing found was Jan. 4, 2022, in Albany, New York. More recently, an aircraft in Belgium had its landing gear snap when it attempted to land just after takeoff.

A Delta spokesperson in Atlanta described the incident as unusual, saying: I’ve been in the industry 20 years, I think I’ve seen one other one in 20 years of this type, so it’s very rare. We treat them all very seriously and will understand exactly what drive it and put those corrective actions in place.”

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