United flight goes off taxiway at Houston George Bush Intercontinental Airport
HOUSTON - No injuries were reported after a United Airlines flight went off of the taxiway at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston on Friday morning, officials say.
"It was a lot of anxiety," said Shaun Lee, a passenger flying from Memphis to Houston.
According to United Airlines, after UA2477 landed, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 exited the taxiway into a grassy area.
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"It was smooth sailing until all of a sudden we are coming in and bang, and we’re sitting sideway," said Lee.
"It was like he came in too hard, then the plane started trembling. Next thing we know, it tilted all the way to the left," said Darin Foster, another passenger who was visiting Houston for a wedding.
The flight from Memphis had 160 passengers and six crew members onboard, United Airlines says. Some of the passengers expressed their frustrations with the incident.
"It was kind of terrifying. It was shocking to experience something so drastic like that," said Foster.
Airline officials say customers got off of the plane using air stairs and were bused to the terminal. Their team assisted passengers with onward connections and other needs.
"We are removing luggage from the aircraft and will work to reunite customers with their belongings as quickly as possible. We are thankful for the actions of our crew to deplane all passengers safely," United Airlines said, in part, in a statement.
The airline says their teams will move the aircraft from the taxiway as soon as they are able to do so.
United Airlines says they will work with the NTSB, FAA, and Boeing to understand what happened.
In a statement, Houston Airports said,
"Around 8 a.m. today, a United Airlines flight landed at George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH). As it was exiting the runway, the aircraft left the pavement and entered the grass along Runway 9-27.
Fortunately, no one on board was injured. The Houston Fire Department and Houston Airports Operations immediately responded and safely evacuated all passengers.
Per federal regulation, the FAA has been notified. United Airlines is working to remove the plane, which is not impacting flight operations. Flights in and out of lAH continue without interruption.
For more details about the flight, please reach out to United Airlines."