ANA Boeing 737 makes emergency landing in Okinawa following engine vibration alert.
An All Nippon Airways (ANA) passenger plane made an emergency landing at Naha Airport in Okinawa after its pilots detected severe vibrations and abnormally high oil temperatures in one of the aircraft’s engines. The incident occurred on September 23 in Okinawa, Japan.
The Boeing 737-800, operated by ANA Wings, was carrying 152 passengers and six crew members when the engine problem emerged around 20 minutes after take-off on Wednesday night, according to a report by the Mirror.
The flight crew responded by shutting down the affected right engine and turning the aircraft back towards Naha Airport for an emergency landing.
Right engine shut down during flight
ANA Flight 1502 took off from Naha shortly before 9pm, bound for Saga Airport. Around 20 minutes into the journey, cockpit instruments indicated unusually high oil temperatures and strong vibrations in the aircraft’s right engine.
The pilots responded by shutting down the affected engine and requesting an emergency return to Naha. The Boeing 737 landed safely at around 10pm before coming to a stop on a taxiway.
Passengers evacuate via emergency slides
Following the landing, all passengers and crew were evacuated from the aircraft using emergency slides. ANA said three passengers sustained minor scrapes during the evacuation, but none required treatment by ambulance crews.
No fire or smoke was reported during the incident. One passenger was also reported to have heard a loud boom while the aircraft was in flight.
Japanese authorities launch investigation
Japan’s transport authorities classified the event as a serious incident and opened an investigation to determine what caused the engine malfunction.
Investigators are expected to analyse the aircraft’s flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder as part of efforts to determine what caused the engine malfunction. ANA is also conducting its own investigation into the incident.
Passengers flown to Fukuoka the next morning
The original service had been scheduled to fly to Fukuoka but was already delayed. As Fukuoka Airport does not accept arrivals after 10pm, ANA had arranged for the passengers to travel instead to nearby Saga Airport.
However, following the emergency return to Naha, the passengers were provided with accommodation and later flown to Fukuoka the following morning.
