Photos show the left nose wheel missing from the Scoot plane parked at Taiwan’s Taoyuan International Airport on June 19. - PHOTOS: LIANHE ZAOBAO READER via The Straits Times/ANN
By Chin Hui Shan (The Straits Times/ANN): SINGAPORE: A Scoot plane’s left nose wheel was missing when it landed in Taipei for a scheduled stop on Monday morning while flying from South Korea to Singapore.
No one was injured.
Scoot, is a Singaporean low-cost airline and a wholly owned subsidiary of Singapore Airlines. It began its operations on 4 June 2012 on medium and long-haul routes from Singapore, predominantly to various airports throughout the Asia-Pacific region
According to local media, the wheel fell off when Scoot Flight TR897 landed at Taiwan’s Taoyuan International Airport at 12.06am on Monday.
Photos online show the left nose wheel missing from the aircraft parked at the airport. The affected plane was a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, whose landing gear near the front of the aircraft – or nose – has two wheels. The nose wheel helps an aircraft to manoeuvre on the ground as well as to maintain directional control during take-off and landing.
In response to queries, a Scoot spokesman said a technical fault was detected upon landing in Taipei on Monday.
The flight, which was to depart Taipei for Singapore at 1.30am on Monday, was subsequently cancelled, he added.
A recovery flight leaving Taipei at 8.45pm the same day has been arranged instead to ferry all remaining passengers.
According to Changi Airport’s website, the flight was supposed to arrive at Changi Airport at 5.55am on Monday, but has been rescheduled to arrive at 1.35am on Tuesday.
The Scoot spokesman apologised for the disruption caused, adding that hotel accommodation and flight refunds have been arranged for passengers where applicable.
“The safety of our customers and crew is our top priority, and we will continue to provide assistance to affected customers where necessary,” he said. - The Straits Times/ANN
