MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – Two days after a landing gear collapse on a Dominican airliner led to a fiery landing at Miami International Airport, injuring seven, the damaged jet remained sandwiched between two runways Thursday, continuing to cause delays.
Airport officials told Local 10 News that the wrecked RED Air MD-82 is likely to be removed and runways reopened Friday.
A total of 130 passengers and 10 crew members were onboard the plane headed from Santo Domingo to Miami. Officials said the plane experienced a collapse of its left main landing gear and skidded off into the grass between two of the airport’s four runways.
A number of passengers recounted the terrifying crash landing in interviews with Local 10 and ABC News.
The plane’s location between the two runways has caused a ripple effect of delays at the airport, causing flights to compete for slots at the remaining open runways.
Officials said the plane will be defueled and then lifted by a crane onto a flatbed vehicle and then relocated to another area of the airfield, where it will undergo further investigation.
Federal investigators recovered both the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder, which are headed to Washington for analysis.