Photo via Twitter/JuanDeLaGarza1
It could have been much worse. Passengers aboard a U.S. Airways Express jet had a close call Tuesday as the right wingtip of the plane suddenly dipped down and scraped along the runway right at touchdown, Fox 10 Phoenix reported.
Operated by Phoenix-based Mesa Airlines, the Bombardier CRJ aircraft had 90 fliers onboard.
The airliner was landing at McAllen Miller Airport, close to the Texas-Mexico border, after an uneventful flight from Dallas-Fort Worth when the incident occurred.
And it all happened right in front of plane-spotter and photographer Juan Diego De La Garza.
"Right now I'm still on a little bit of an adrenaline rush considering what I saw; what I witnessed could have been a lot worse. Thank God nobody was hurt," he said to Fox 10.
Going through his photos later, De La Garza realized that he had caught the moment the wingtip made contact with the runway, according to Fox 10. He posted the image on social media, and it quickly went viral.
The plane-spotter commented to Fox 10 that the landing seemed normal until a few feet off the runway, when, he believes, there may have been wind shear.
"Considering he was only a few feet off the ground, he (had) a good reaction and saved the plane and all the lives on board," De La Garza asserted to Fox 10.
"Due to concerns about possible damage incurred on landing, the aircraft was removed from service for inspection." Mesa Air Group said in a statement, per Fox 10. "Passengers exited the aircraft normally, and there were no reported injuries. Mesa Airlines is conducting an investigation."
American Airlines, in the process of merging with U.S. Airways, told Fox 10 a return flight was canceled, and stranded fliers were "accommodated."
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