Alaska Airlines Jetliner Makes Emergency Landing in Long Beach
After stopping in Orange County, an Alaska Airlines jetliner bound for the Burbank airport was detoured to Long Beach Airport where it made a safe emergency landing Monday night after reporting a hydraulic problem.
Flight 216, carrying 123 passengers and six crew members, originated in Portland, Ore., and was heading for Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport after a stop at John Wayne Airport when a warning light indicated a hydraulic problem, said Louis Cancelmi, an Alaska spokesman in Seattle. The crew switched to a backup system.
“There was an actual hydraulic leak reported when the captain was making his approach to Burbank. He saw the indicator light come on and he switched to a backup system,” Cancelmi said.
The captain turned the MD-80 around and flew to Long Beach where a crew of the airline’s mechanics is stationed.
Passengers with connections in Burbank were flown there by charter. About 50 other passengers were bused to Burbank.
At Long Beach, some passengers expressed anger because the airline allegedly failed to notify them of the hydraulic problem. But Cancelmi said the captain did disclose the mechanical problem before detouring from Burbank to Long Beach.
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