Lufthansa Boeing 787 nose gear collapses at Frankfurt gate, injuring several staff
The nose gear of a Lufthansa Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner retracted unexpectedly while parked at a Frankfurt airport gate on Thursday, causing the aircraft to drop forward and injuring several crew and ground staff.
Incident at the gate
A Lufthansa Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner sustained severe damage at Frankfurt Airport on Thursday when its nose landing gear unexpectedly retracted while the aircraft was parked at a gate. The incident occurred at 12:45 p.m. local time (1045 GMT), roughly one hour before the jet was scheduled to depart for Los Angeles as flight LH450. Passengers had not yet boarded, but crew members and ground staff were already on the aircraft preparing for departure.
While the aircraft was parked, the nose landing gear retracted unexpectedly.
Video published by the German newspaper Bild showed the nose wheel sliding forward, causing the front of the aircraft to drop more than two metres before striking the ground. A ground employee standing near the cockpit narrowly avoided the impact. The widebody twin-engine jet came to rest tilted forward, partly lying on its belly.
Injuries and response
Several employees were injured in the incident and received medical treatment at the scene. Lufthansa has not specified the exact number of injured staff or the severity of their injuries. Italian newspaper il Giornale reported that none of the injuries appeared to be serious and that no emergency transport was required. Multiple emergency vehicles were photographed surrounding the aircraft.
Several employees were injured and are currently receiving medical attention.
The flight to Los Angeles was cancelled. The aircraft remained heavily damaged and was in no condition to operate the scheduled service.
Aircraft details
The damaged aircraft is a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, a relatively new addition to the Lufthansa fleet. According to the aviation news website Aerotelegraph, the jet was only one year old and had been delivered to Lufthansa in January. The 787-9 variant is part of Lufthansa's plan to gradually phase out less efficient jets and simplify its fleet.
Investigation underway
Lufthansa has launched a crisis unit to determine the cause of the incident and is cooperating with the relevant authorities. The investigation will need to establish whether the nose gear collapse resulted from a mechanical failure or human error. Boeing has not yet issued a public statement on the event.
We are currently investigating the exact circumstances with the relevant authorities.
- Boeing 787-9 delivered to Lufthansa (per Aerotelegraph)
- Nose gear retracts unexpectedly at Frankfurt gate; aircraft drops forward
- Emergency vehicles arrive; injured staff receive medical treatment
- Lufthansa confirms flight LH450 to Los Angeles is cancelled
