Landing gear of US Airways plane collapses

More than 150 people were evacuated from a US
Airways flight after a Florida-bound plane’s front
landing gear collapsed on a runway.
Flights were halted at Philadelphia International
Airport as those on board exited the plane via
inflatable ramps.
One person asked for medical assistance but no
major injuries were reported, airport officials said.
An airport spokeswoman said the plane was about
to take off when the malfunction happened.
The Airbus 320 was carrying 149 passengers and
five crewmembers.
A passenger, Dennis Fee, told local broadcaster
WPVI it was “very windy and when the plane took
off, the nose of the plane went back down, hitting
the runway”.
“We were airborne, then struck back down by the
nose,” Fee said.
The airport spokeswoman, Victoria Lupica, said all
the passengers had been rescheduled on another
flight to Fort Lauderdale.
US Airways spokesman William McGlashen said:
“Initial reports indicate Flight 1702 from Philadelphia
to Fort Lauderdale (Florida) blew a tyre on take-off
and the pilot elected to abort take-off.”
Three of the four runways were reopened later on
Thursday evening.