Video: Panic as plane crash lands at airport with no wheels
AFP/Getty
A commercial plane carrying 230 passengers carried out an emergency landing today after its landing gear completely failed.
The pilot has been hailed a hero after bringing the Boeing 767 in to land at Warsaw Airport with no wheels - and no injuries.
The plane, which was en route from Newark, New Jersey, skidded along the runway as sparks flew from under the engines and smoke billowed from the undercarriage.
Poland's President Bronislaw Komorowsk, as well as the airport staff and the Polish media, said Captain Tadeusz Wrona and co-pilot Jerzy Szwartz were heroes.
According to the Daily Mail, Komorowski: 'I thank everyone with my whole heart in the name of Poland.' And LOT airlines president, Marcin Pirog, said both pilots carried out a 'perfect emergency landing'.
Many passengers reportedly feared it was their final moment, with some saying their farewells to each other.
The plane circled the airport for an hour while trying to solve the problem. Ground crews below prepared for a crash landing, closing off the airport to all other flights and clearing out nearby streets.
Fire crews were also on hand to spray the runway with foam to prevent a blaze breaking out.
When the captain decided there was nothing else to be done but make the emergency landing, fire engines were waiting and doused the aircraft with foam, while passengers were taken off via inflatable chutes on the side.
See what happened here:
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