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Boeing 737 Max 8 makes emergency landing in Florida, Southwest Airlines says

Boeing spokesman says company 'aware of the incident and supporting our customers'

Andrew Buncombe

Seattle

Tuesday 26 March 2019 17:49 GMT

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Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 Max 8 makes emergency landing in Orlando over 'engine problem'

A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 Max 8 has made an emergency landing in Florida after suffering what officials described as an “engine-related problem”.

The plane, the same model of which has been grounded around the world following two crashes that appeared to indicate problems with a new anti-stall system, was not carrying passengers when it was forced to make the emergency landing at Orlando International Airport.

Rather, two pilots were flying the plane to Victorville, California, where it was to have been stored. Instead, they were obliged to return to Orlando at around 3pm on Tuesday, according to the Orlando Sentinel.

“The crew of Southwest Airlines Flight 8701, a Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, declared an emergency after the aircraft experienced a reported engine problem while departing from Orlando International Airport in Florida about 2.50pm today,” the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said in a statement.

“The aircraft returned and landed safely in Orlando. No passengers were aboard the aircraft, which was being ferried to Victorville, Calif., for storage. The FAA is investigating.”

Boeing 737 MAX grounding: Ethiopia Airlines Flight 302 in pictures

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1/9Boeing 737 MAX grounding: Ethiopia Airlines Flight 302 in pictures

Boeing 737 MAX grounding: Ethiopia Airlines Flight 302 in pictures

This picture taken on March 11, 2019, shows debris of the crashed airplane of Ethiopia Airlines, near Bishoftu, a town some 60 kilometres southeast of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. - An Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 crashed on March 10 morning en route from Addis Ababa to Nairobi with 149 passengers and eight crew believed to be on board, Ethiopian Airlines said. (Photo by Michael TEWELDE / AFP)MICHAEL TEWELDE/AFP/Getty Images

AFP/Getty Images

Boeing 737 MAX grounding: Ethiopia Airlines Flight 302 in pictures

Family members mourn the victims at the crash site of the Ethiopian Airlines operated Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, at Hama Quntushele village in the Oromia region, on March 13, 2019. - A Nairobi-bound Ethiopian Airlines Boeing crashed minutes after takeoff from Addis Ababa on March 10, 2019, killing all eight crew and 149 passengers on board, including tourists, business travellers, and "at least a dozen" UN staff. Families of the victims were taken to the remote site on March 13, 2019, where the plane smashed into a field with 157 passengers and crew from 35 countries, leaving a deep black crater and tiny scraps of debris. (Photo by TONY KARUMBA / AFP)TONY KARUMBA/AFP/Getty Images

AFP/Getty Images

Boeing 737 MAX grounding: Ethiopia Airlines Flight 302 in pictures

A page of a Boeing flight crew operations manual is seen at the scene of the Ethiopian Airlines Flight ET 302 plane crash, near the town of Bishoftu, near Addis Ababa, Ethiopia March 12, 2019. REUTERS/Baz Ratner

REUTERS

Boeing 737 MAX grounding: Ethiopia Airlines Flight 302 in pictures

epa07434278 Rescue workers search the site for pieces of the wreckage of an Ethiopia Airlines Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft near Bishoftu, Ethiopia, 13 March 2019. Ethiopian Airlines flight ET 302 carrying 149 passengers and 8 crew was en route to Nairobi, Kenya, when it crashed on 10 March 2019 by yet undetermined reason. All passengers and crew aboard died in the crash. The Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft has come under scrutiny after similar deadly crashes in Ethiopia and Indonesia within a few months. Several countries have banned the plane type from their airspace and many airlines have grounded their 737 Max 8 planes for safety concerns after the Ethiopian Airlines plane crashed minutes after take-off on 10 March. EPA/STRINGER

EPA

Boeing 737 MAX grounding: Ethiopia Airlines Flight 302 in pictures

A grounded Boeing 737 MAX 8 passenger plane of the Norwegian low-cost airline Norwegian is parked at the tarmac at Vantaa airport in Vantaa near Helsinki, Finland on March 13, 2019. - A number of countries have banned Boeing's 737 MAX 8 medium-haul workhorse jet from their airspace in response to the Ethiopian Airlines crash that killed all 157 people on board. (Photo by Heikki Saukkomaa / Lehtikuva / AFP) / Finland OUTHEIKKI SAUKKOMAA/AFP/Getty Images

AFP/Getty Images

Boeing 737 MAX grounding: Ethiopia Airlines Flight 302 in pictures

Rescue workers search the site for pieces of the wreckage of an Ethiopia Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft near Bishoftu, Ethiopia, 13 March 2019. Ethiopian Airlines flight ET 302 carrying 149 passengers and 8 crew was en route to Nairobi, Kenya, when it crashed on 10 March 2019 by yet undetermined reason. All passengers and crew aboard died in the crash. The Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft has come under scrutiny after similar deadly crashes in Ethiopia and Indonesia within a few months. Several countries have banned the plane type from their airspace and many airlines have grounded their 737 Max 8 planes for safety concerns after the Ethiopian Airlines plane crashed minutes after take-off on 10 March. EPA/STRINGER

EPA

Boeing 737 MAX grounding: Ethiopia Airlines Flight 302 in pictures

A heap of debris from the wreckage of an Ethiopia Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft are piled at the crash site near Bishoftu, Ethiopia, 13 March 2019. Ethiopian Airlines flight ET 302 carrying 149 passengers and 8 crew was en route to Nairobi, Kenya, when it crashed on 10 March 2019 by yet undetermined reason. All passengers and crew aboard died in the crash. The Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft has come under scrutiny after similar deadly crashes in Ethiopia and Indonesia within a few months. Several countries have banned the plane type from their airspace and many airlines have grounded their 737 Max 8 planes for safety concerns after the Ethiopian Airlines plane crashed minutes after take-off on 10 March. EPA/STR

EPA

Boeing 737 MAX grounding: Ethiopia Airlines Flight 302 in pictures

A crew working with an investigative team to clear the site after the Sunday crash of the Ethiopian Airlines operated Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, carry debris at Hama Quntushele village in the Oromia region, on March 13, 2019. - A Nairobi-bound Ethiopian Airlines Boeing crashed minutes after takeoff from Addis Ababa on March 10, killing all eight crew and 149 passengers on board, including tourists, business travellers, and "at least a dozen" UN staff. Families of the victims were taken to the remote site on March 13, 2019, where the plane smashed into a field with 157 passengers and crew from 35 countries, leaving a deep black crater and tiny scraps of debris. (Photo by TONY KARUMBA / AFP)TONY KARUMBA/AFP/Getty Images

AFP/Getty Images

Boeing 737 MAX grounding: Ethiopia Airlines Flight 302 in pictures

FILE PHOTO: An American Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8, on a flight from Miami to New York City, comes in for landing at LaGuardia Airport in New York, U.S., March 12, 2019. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File Photo

REUTERS

A Boeing spokesman said it the company was “aware of the incident and supporting our customers”.

Southwest Airlines said its pilots reported a performance issue with one of the engines shortly after takeoff. “The crew followed protocol and safely landed back at the airport,” it said.

How to tell if you're on a Boeing 737 Max

The FAA joined regulators around the world earlier this month in grounding the planes, produced in Seattle, following two crashes – Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 and last October’s crash of a Lion Air flight.

The Ethiopian Airlines crash earlier this month resulted in the deaths of all 157 passengers on board. In Indonesia, 189 people lost their lives.

Investigators said the two downing had “clear similarities”. They are currently investigating the recently-introduced manoeuvring characteristics augmentation system (MCAS), which is designed to stop planes form stalling on take off.

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