Three Month-Old Plane Should Still Be Under Warranty...

The sparks seen during Tuesday's emergency landing of a Midwest Airlines Boeing 717 (file photo of type, below) at Boston's Logan International Airport have been traced to a faulty wheel bearing, according to the FAA.

Investigators found a bearing in the outer wheel of the right maingear seized, causing damage to a tire and brake rotors when the wheel locked up during the plane's initial takeoff roll.

The sparks were seen by witnesses, who alerted the tower to possible problems with the three-month old aircraft.

As was reported in Real-Time by Aero-News, ATC alerted the flight crew, who circled the field for an hour to burn off fuel before making a flawless emergency landing, in the third of four televised landing drama-lets that have been nationally televised since September.

All 86 passengers and 4 crewmembers onboard the flight were fine.

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IDENTIFICATION
  Regis#: 924ME        Make/Model: B712      Description: 717-200
  Date: 12/21/2005     Time: 0041

  Event Type: Incident   Highest Injury: None     Mid Air: N    Missing: N
  Damage: Unknown

LOCATION
  City: BOSTON   State: MA   Country: US

DESCRIPTION
N924ME, MIDWEST EXPRESS MEP210, A BOEING 717-200 ACFT REPORTED ON DEPARTURE, SPARKS COMING FROM THE REAR OF THE AIRCRAFT, AND INDICATED A PROBLEM WITH THE RIGHT MAIN GEAR DOOR, CIRCLED TO BURN OFF FUEL, LANDED WITHOUT INCIDENT AND TOWED TO THE GATE, BOSTON, MA

INJURY DATA      Total Fatal:   0
                 # Crew:   0     Fat:   0     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:   
                 # Pass:   0     Fat:   0     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:   
                 # Grnd:         Fat:   0     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:   

WEATHER: NOT REPORTED

OTHER DATA
  Activity: Business      Phase: Take-off      Operation: Air Carrier

  Departed: BOSTON, MA                  Dep Date:    Dep. Time:     
  Destination:                          Flt Plan:              Wx Briefing: 
  Last Radio Cont: 
  Last Clearance: 

  FAA FSDO: BOSTON, MA  (NE01)                    Entry date: 12/21/2005

FMI: www.faa.gov/data_statistics/accident_incident/preliminary_data/