Video: Boeing Aircraft Strikes Runway with Its Tail and Sends Sparks Flying During Landing in US

Moments of anxiety unfolded on Sunday at Cincinnati Airport in Northern Kentucky, US, after a Kalitta Air Boeing 777-300ER cargo aircraft struck the runway with its tail during an attempted landing, sending sparks flying.

The aircraft was operating Kalitta Air Flight 264 from Brussels when its first landing attempt failed. Its tail struck and scraped along the tarmac before the aircraft took off again.

Footage obtained by Fox19 television shows the moment the rear of the aircraft made contact with the runway, causing sparks. A witness near the runway can be heard reacting in astonishment to the scene.

After regaining altitude, the aircraft prepared for a second attempt and landed without incident at around 20:15 local time. Kalitta Air operations manager Heath Nichol confirmed that no crew members were injured.

Immediately after landing, the Boeing 777-300ER was taken out of service and underwent a technical inspection to determine whether it had sustained any damage.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has opened an investigation to determine the cause of the incident and the circumstances in which the aircraft’s tail touched the runway during the landing process.