Malaysia Airlines flight MH192 landed safely in KL after landing gear scare

Malaysia Airlines flight MH192 from Kuala Lumpur to Bangalore is seen at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang outside Kuala Lumpur on April 21, 2014. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
Malaysia Airlines flight MH192 from Kuala Lumpur to Bangalore is seen at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang outside Kuala Lumpur on April 21, 2014. -- PHOTO: REUTERS

MALAYSIA Airlines (MAS) Bangalore-bound flight MH192 landed safely in Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) early Monday after making a turn back due to a malfunctioned landing gear.

"Malaysia Airlines flight MH192 that made an air turn back towards KLIA has landed safely at 1:56am," the carrier announced on its Twitter early Monday.

Acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein heaved a sigh of relief on Twitter following the good news.

"All passengers safe alhamdullilah - nevertheless - i am getting ready 2 go there personally !!!" wrote the minister, who had been living under intense media glare following the baffling disappearance of Beijing-bound flight MH370 on March 8, along with its 239 passengers and crew members.

The Boeing 737, which departed from KLIA at 10:09pm on Sunday, turned back from its scheduled flight path to Bangalore, India, soon after takeoff. It then hovered above the Straits of Malacca off the state of Selangor for more than three hours, sparking concerns over the safety of the 159 passengers and seven crew members on board.

In a statement issued at 3:18am on Monday, MAS said the turn back was required as one of the tyres on the right-hand main landing gear had burst during takeoff.

"The Captain was alerted by Kuala Lumpur Air Traffic Control that tyre debris were found on the runway and immediately contacted Malaysia Airlines Operations Control Centre (OCC) at 10:25pm.

"As safety is of utmost priority to Malaysia Airlines, the aircraft was required to turn back to KLIA.

"The Airport Fire Rescue Services (AFRS) were deployed as soon as the pilot was instructed to turn back to KLIA by OCC," MAS said.

It added that all passengers had been sent to nearby hotels to spend the night. Their flight has been rescheduled to take off at 3:30pm on Monday.

The beleaguered airline had reported several missteps since it came under intense scrutiny after MH370 vanished without a trace.

On March 23, its Kathmandu-bound flight had to be grounded for repair after the plane was hit by a flock of birds.

Two days later its Inchon-bound flight MH066 had to divert its course and landed at the Hong Kong Inter­national Airport after the plane's generator failed.

On March 28, a fire broke out at the airlines' avionics workshop in Subang.

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