Disabled jet disrupts O.C. airport AVIATION: Plane with flat tires blocks a runway for 4 hours, delaying flights.

December 9, 2000

Story by ALDRIN BROWN, BILL RAMS and MOSHAY SIMPSON Photos by BRUCE CHAMBERS The Orange County Register

Three tires on a Delta Air Lines MD-90 jet with 48 people aboard blew out as it landed at John Wayne Airport on Friday afternoon, obstructing the airfield's only commercial runway and snarling air traffic for more than four hours.

Flight 887 was arriving from Dallas-Fort Worth Airport when the incident occurred about 12:20 p.m.

Leaking hydraulic fluid dripped onto the wheel area beneath the wings, touching off a small fire that was quickly extinguished, airport spokeswoman Ann McCarley said.

Delta officials said they were investigating what caused the tires to go flat. No injuries were reported, but the damaged airplane blocked the runway, delaying about 50 flights scheduled to arrive at or depart from the Orange County airport.

"I've got three kids to get home to," said Debbie Bodenheimer, 36, who had to get off her flight to Atlanta, where she was to catch a connecting flight home to New Orleans.

"They haven't seen their mother since Tuesday. Now, I'll probably end up spending the night in Orange County," she said.

Some flights headed to Orange County didn't get off the ground after Federal Aviation Administration officials ordered them to wait at their originating airports.

The Delta aircraft was towed from the runway about 4:35 p.m., and air operations resumed almost immediately.

A smaller runway used by private planes remained open throughout the incident.

Delta spokesman John Kennedy said the delay was caused partly by the need for airline maintenance experts to travel from Los Angeles to assess the damage.

Many passengers on Flight 887 reported being jostled by a rougher-than-usual landing and an abrupt stop. Several passengers said they smelled something burning after the plane stopped.

"I knew something was wrong," said John Hicks, 53, of Laguna Niguel, who was returning from a horse show in Texas. "You could tell the plane was trying to go left because of the flat tires. I think the pilot did a good job of keeping the plane straight."

The 42 passengers and six crew members walked down stairs at a rear door.

Many passengers said they never felt in danger and were only mildly concerned.

Michael Lowitz of Cincinnati said the landing likely would not affect his travel routine.

"I fly every week," said Lowitz, 38. "I really wasn't too worried about it."

The same could not be said for thousands of stranded travelers who fumed at word that they would be delayed or miss crucial connections.

Dave Nyland, a geophysicist from Alaska, had hoped to arrive home in time to take his wife to a Christmas party. Instead, he was sipping beer and watching election news at an airport bar.

"We had reservations for a room at the hotel and everything, but there's nothing I can do," said Nyland, 49.

John Wayne Airport was last closed in October when a security breach halted air operations for more than an hour, McCarley said.

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-- Doris (nocents@bellsouth.net), December 10, 2000