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Southwest Jet Crashes On Its Nose After Landing Gear Fails, Injuring 10

In a minor crash that was alarming for all, but seriously injuring for none, a Boeing 737-700 skidded to a halt when its landing gear failed to open on a New York City runway. The jet, owned by Southwest Airlines, fell upon its nose when the landing gear simply collapsed, startling the 143 passengers and 6 crew members, but leaving only 10 people with minor injuries. After the plan screeched across the runway, it finally halted in a grassy area nearby.

“It was unlike any other landing,” said passenger Kathy Boles, as reported by the Los Angeles Times. “It was just a bang and a bounce and then just a slam on the brakes and that skidding feeling. It was very clear … that something was really wrong and that we did not land on wheels in the front.”

Clearly a terrifying moment, as when the pilot instructed passengers to check their seatbelts and their neighbors seatbelts. “All of a sudden, this huge bang,” said another passenger,” Frank Ferramosca, speaking to CNN.

This isn’t the only time a Boeing 737 has stuttered with its landing gear, recently. A similar crash happened on July 6 with Asiana Airlines, when three were killed in San Francisco when the landing gear failed to work.

Daniel June: Daniel June studied English literature at Michigan State University, graduating in 2003. Working a potpourri of jobs since, from cake-decorator to proofreader, his passion has always been writing, resulting in books of essays, novels, and children’s novellas.