Staff Correspondent:

The rear wheel of a Biman Bangladesh Airlines jet from Cox’s Bazar to Dhaka has fallen off in the middle of its flight.

The flight, carrying 71 passengers, eventually landed safely at Shahjalal International Airport at 2:17pm on Friday.

The aircraft was a model DASH-8-200. It was set to depart Cox’s Bazar at 1:25pm and land at the Dhaka airport at 2:30pm.

Golam Mortoza Hossain, director of Cox’s Bazar Airport, said the wheel came off and fell moments after the plane had taken off. It was later collected from Cox’s Bazar’s Samiti Para.

Right after taking off, the pilot told Dhaka Air Traffic Control (ATC) that he wanted an emergency landing, prompting officials at Shahjalal International Airport to make arrangements. A unit of the Fire Service was also kept on standby, as is the norm.

ABM Raoshan Kabir, managing director of the Biman Bangladesh Airlines Public Relations Department, said: “A wheel of a flight that set off from Cox’s Bazar fell off during the trip. However, the flight landed safely at Shahjalal International Airport. Our engineering team is monitoring it. An investigation will be conducted to uncover the cause of the incident.”

Biman’s flight safety division said pilots can land planes without a wheel, but it requires skills.