A Boeing jetliner taking off from Los Angeles lost a wheel, the latest in a series of safety risks for the aviation giant.
United Airlines, the carrier that operated the Boeing 757-200, said the plane lost a wheel Monday after leaving Los Angeles International Airport but landed safely in Denver, its intended destination.
“The wheel has been recovered in Los Angeles and we are investigating the cause of this incident,” the airline said in a statement.
There were no injuries on the ground, nor among the 174 passengers and seven crew members on board.
It was the second time in recent months that a United Airlines Boeing plane lost a wheel after takeoff.
In March, a tire on a United Airlines Boeing 777 bound for Japan came loose shortly after takeoff from San Francisco, forcing the plane to make an emergency landing.
In January, a Delta Air Lines Boeing 757 lost its nose gear while preparing for takeoff at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta.
Delta said a nose wheel tire and rim had become detached and rolled down a hill. Passengers had to evacuate the plane, but no one was injured.
Boeing on Monday agreed to a settlement with the U.S. Justice Department to plead guilty to fraud charges in connection with two deadly 737 Max crashes.
Boeing has come under fire again this year over the 737 Max, after a fuselage door on the same model failed during an Alaska Airlines flight in January.
A Boeing spokesman said in an email that the 757-200 plane that took off Monday was first delivered 30 years ago, in 1994.
Production of the 757 model was discontinued in 2004.
The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating Monday’s incident.
Additional reporting by Bloomberg and Tribune News Service