Cops: 2 hurt when small plane slides off Republic runway after landing gear fails to deploy
A smail jet aircraft slid off a runway at Republic Airport on Sunday night. Credit: Neil Miller
The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board are investigating after a twin-engine jet's landing gear collapsed at Republic Airport in East Farmingdale and the plane slid off the runway, federal officials said Monday.
The 2001 Raytheon Hawker 800XP operated by Talon Air carried two crew members but no passengers at the time of the Sunday night mishap, Talon Air spokeswoman Lisa Hendrickson said. According to records, the jet can seat 15, but Talon Air said this particular plane seats just eight.
Records confirmed by the FAA show the flight departed Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport at 6:16 p.m. Sunday and arrived at Republic at about 8:35 p.m. According to Suffolk County police, the landing gear on the jet had "failed to deploy," but the FAA said in a statement Monday that the jet "experienced nose and main gear collapse" upon landing at Republic.
It was not immediately clear if the crew had any indication of a gear problem before landing — or if they declared an emergency before the incident.
The names of the pilots have not been released.
The plane landed at 8:35 p.m. and someone aboard radioed: "Mayday, Mayday, Mayday Talon Air 941 crash-landing runway 1-4, we're still occupying, send vehicles out," according to the Aviation Safety Network's website.
Police said First Precinct officers responded to the airport shortly before 9 p.m. for a report that a small plane landed off the runway. The two occupants were transported to Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow for treatment of minor injuries, authorities said.
East Farmingdale Fire Department Chief Duane Welliver said the plane "crashed on landing and slid across the runway. We don’t have any details on what caused the crash."
Additional information was not immediately available.
Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.
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