Busted tire forces PAL plane to land in LAX

MANILA, Philippines - Filipino pilots once again proved to be the best in the business.

This was apparent when a Philippine Airlines (PAL) flight landed safely at the LA International Airport (LAX) Friday night (Saturday morning) despite a blown tire.

The unnamed pilot of PAL flight PR 102 from Manila managed to safely land the B-747 aircraft with 400 passengers on board after calling for an emergency landing.

Officials said the pilot requested for a flyby at the LAX control tower to confirm their suspicion that one of the plane’s 18 tires was busted.

The LAX tower then confirmed that one of the aircraft’s tires was damaged but still gave the pilot the green light to land the aircraft.

It was initially reported from news networks in the US that the aircraft suffered landing gear problems.

The report sent journalists scampering to LAX to witness the emergency landing.

There was even a video report on KCAL 9 News, posted on the website of CBS Los Angeles, that showed the gripping minutes before PAL flight PR102 succeeded in making a safe landing.

The video clip started with the plane being seen in its final stages of descent into LAX, one of busiest airports in the world.

But despite the trouble, the pilot managed to land the airplane safely, PAL said in a statement.

PAL said a thorough inspection of the tire and replacement allowed the aircraft to fly back to Manila as flight PR 103.

PAL denied news reports that the airplane suffered landing gear problems.

The reporter who witnessed the landing reportedly mentioned the “perfect smooth landing” made by the PAL pilot. The reporter described the landing as “solid and good.”

One of the passengers in that flight sent text messages to his friends in Manila that the pilot was able to land the plane safely. The passenger said the pilot “is really good.”

One of the passengers posted on Twitter that PAL has one of the best airline crew in the world.