The Miami Herald of Tuesday, September 22, 1998 reports that a Southern Air Boeing 747 (Flight #105) en route to Paraguay and loaded with 190,000 lbs of cargo, blew three tires on the rear left-hand gear during take-off "and was forced to make an emergency return landing" closing down a 13,000 foot runway for over five hours.
The Herald reported that "..bare tire rims caused grooves in the runway, and 'there was damage to the undercarriage of the airplane' Henderson [of the Miami-Dade Aviation Department] said"
The plane had dumped much of its fuel prior to landing (most commercial aircraft cannot land with any substantial amount of fuel on board).
[Related topics: Swissair 111, TWA 800]
[Related articles: The Achilles Heel of the Big Jets, Danger Aloft]
[Pictures of a similar incident: Pan Am DC-10, London, Sept 1980]
