Boeing 787 Scrapes Tail and Bursts Tires During Takeoff in Munich
Listen to the story
A Boeing 787 plane experienced a serious problem while taking off in Munich, Germany.
According to reports, the plane left the ground very late during its takeoff run, going past the normal point on the runway.
As it lifted into the air, the tail of the aircraft scraped against the ground.
The impact caused two of the plane's tires to burst.
Because of these problems, the pilots decided not to continue the flight.
Instead, they turned the plane around and made an emergency landing back at Munich Airport.
The aircraft landed safely, and there were no reports of serious injuries.
Airport authorities are now investigating what caused the plane to take off so late.
They are also checking whether the runway or the plane itself had any technical issue.
Incidents like this are considered very unusual for large passenger aircraft like the Boeing 787.
Airlines and aviation authorities take such events seriously, since a damaged tail or burst tires could affect the safety of a flight.
Investigators will likely look at flight data and speak to the pilots to understand exactly what happened during the takeoff.
For now, no further details have been released about the number of passengers on board or the exact cause of the delay in takeoff.
Vocabulary8 words
- takeoff run
- the part of the runway a plane uses to speed up before flying
- runway
- a long road where planes take off and land
- tail
- the back part of a plane
- tires
- round rubber parts under the plane that touch the ground
- burst
- broke suddenly, with air escaping fast
- emergency landing
- landing quickly and carefully because something is wrong
- authorities
- people or groups in charge, like airport officials
- technical issue
- a problem with a machine or system
Quiz
Answer key
1. It scraped the ground 2. Because two tires burst and the tail was damaged 3. False
Fill-in-the-blank listening
Play the audio again and fill in the missing words as you listen.
A Boeing 787 plane experienced a serious problem while taking off in _____, Germany.
According to reports, the plane left the ground very late during its _____, going past the normal point on the runway.
As it lifted into the air, the _____ of the aircraft scraped against the ground.
The impact caused two of the plane's _____ to burst.
Because of these problems, the pilots decided not to continue the flight.
Instead, they turned the plane around and made an _____ back at Munich Airport.
The aircraft landed safely, and there were no reports of serious _____.
Airport _____ are now investigating what caused the plane to take off so late.
They are also checking whether the runway or the plane itself had any technical issue.
Incidents like this are considered very unusual for large passenger aircraft like the Boeing 787.
Discussion questions
- Why do you think the plane took off so late on the runway?
- How serious do you think this kind of incident is for airline safety?
- What steps do you think airports and airlines should take after an event like this?
- Have you ever heard of similar aviation incidents? What happened?