An American Airlines flight that overran its runway last month was found to have suffered an “anomaly” in the braking system.
The aircraft, identified as a Boeing 737-800, had undergone a brake replacement four days prior, NBC 5 DFW reported.
An inspection found that the flexible hydraulic lines to parts of the braking system had been improperly reconnected, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said in a preliminary report. American Airlines had purportedly replaced steel brakes on the main landing gears with carbon brakes and wheel assemblies based on 2016 instructions from Boeing.
American Airlines said in a statement that it was cooperating with investigators and that safety is the airline’s top priority, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
When the incident occurred, the aircraft had trouble coming to a stop. When making its landing, the plane’s automatic brakes switched from off to on and then off again, according to NTSB. The pilot used brake pedals and thrust reversers to slow down, but when nearing the end of the runway, the captain warned air traffic controllers.
“Total brake failure. We are departing the end of runway 17L. Roll crash fire rescue,” the captain said, according to NBC 5, before the plane safely came to a stop in the runway safety area.
Passengers and crew were deplaned after the overrun and bused about 90 minutes after touchdown. There were no injuries among the 99 passengers.
The oversight organization said its investigation was ongoing. The plane, built in 2009, is an earlier version of the Boeing 737 than the Max.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, Boeing and a number of airlines have been facing increased scrutiny after several high-profile air travel mishaps.
