An amusing and somewhat ridiculous video is making the social media rounds right now showing a plane getting pushed off of a runway. The plane reportedly blew a tire and blocked the small airport’s only runway, so passengers decided to fix things themselves.
We’ve all had those bad days where your car breaks down and you need some help getting it pushed off to the side of the road. It’s even worse if that car is heavy. That’s what makes this video originally from TikTok a giggle. It’s a plane with a flat tire getting removed from a runway just like a broken down car, just with a lot more people pushing it.
On December 1st, the Indian Express reports, Tara Air de Havilland DHC-6-300 Twin Otter, registration 9N-AEV landed at Nepal’s Bajura Airport. Upon landing, a tire blew on one of the aircraft’s main gear. The Twin Otter then stopped on the runway, blocking all other air traffic.
Bajura Airport is in Budhinanda, serving the Bajura district of Nepal. The airport sits at 4,300 feet MSL and consists of a single runway and a ramp for aircraft. There isn’t airport equipment here, just enough room to load up and turn around. So if a plane gets stuck people might have to get creative.
The de Havilland DHC-6 Twin Otter is a twin turboprop capable of short takeoffs and landings. Originally developed by de Havilland Canada, the little plane is popular with bush pilots and airline operations that make good use of its ability to take off from short fields.
It’s unclear how the Tara Air plane was unable to get off of the runway, as planes can usually still move under their own power with a flat tire. But the plane being stuck was preventing another flight from landing, so what looks to be over a dozen passengers and airport officials physically pushed the plane from the runway while the pilot steered.
There were no injuries and everyone’s effort paid off, as service was restored to the airport. This is the second incident for 9N-AEV. The other happened in 2018 when the plane bounced then veered off of a runway during landing, causing some damage.
Tara Air reportedly flew in another plane to provide a tire for the stranded Twin Otter. Flight tracking shows the plane has already returned to the sky.
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