United Flight Makes Emergency Landing In Houston Due To Possible Engine Fire

By Emily Mae Czachor, CBS Dallas/Fort Worth

March 29, 2023

A United Airlines flight that left Houston for Rio de Janeiro reversed course on Tuesday night, eventually making an emergency landing at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport after one of the plane's engines reportedly caught fire, officials said.

United Airlines Flight 129 landed safely after the crew reported a possible fire in the left engine around 9:20 p.m. local time Tuesday, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement. United called it "an engine issue" and said the Boeing 767 returned to Houston shortly after takeoff. The airline had initially described the problem as "a mechanical issue."

In an air traffic control audio tape obtained by CBS News on Wednesday, a Skywest pilot communicating with a control tower can be heard reporting "flames in the departure before us," which the tower identified as United Flight 129. The Skywest pilot described the situation as a "fire in the left engine," which rendered the engine inoperable. The United pilot then confirmed that the flight crew had declared an emergency and the plane would be turning back.

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