Actually, United Airlines wanted to fly from Newark to Sao Paulo with the N21UA on Thursday, September 2022, 787. During the take-off of the Boeing 777, for reasons that are still unclear, severe sparking occurred in the area of ​​the left wing.

For safety reasons, the captain decided to land back. Before that, the long-haul aircraft had to do a few laps over the Atlantic. Meanwhile, fuel was also dumped to lower weight for the upcoming landing. Around 1,5 hours after take-off, the N787UA landed safely at Newark Airport.

Videos randomly taken by eyewitnesses show clear sparking during the ascent of United Airlines Flight UA149. Apparently it is not just a matter of sparks, but parts of the upper wing or the fuselage may have come loose. Some photos of metal parts that fell to the ground are circulating on social media. A glowing object falling onto a car roof can also be seen in the embedded video.

The cause of the incident is still completely unclear. However, this is not the first incident involving United Airlines Boeing 777s. There was a lot in the past. US media speculate a connection with the fact that the carrier operates some units that are well over 30 years old. The NTSB has already started the investigation, so that the first interim report is to be awaited.

Fire alarm system defective on flight from Frankfurt to San Francisco

On September 20, 2022, United Airlines Flight UA927 en route from Frankfurt am Main to San Francisco also encountered technical difficulties. The machine had to switch to London Heathrow. The Boeing 777-300 with the registration N2135U was used.

The cockpit crew discovered an engine problem around 230 miles from London. Specifically, the fire alarm system on a GE90 engine was not working or not working as it should. The captain decided to abort the long-haul flight to San Francisco. An unscheduled landing was made at London Heathrow. Previously, the N2135U had to dump fuel, otherwise the weight would have been too high.

According to United Airlines, the passengers were rebooked on other flight connections. The affected aircraft was extensively examined by technicians. On September 21, 2022, the long-haul aircraft was then flown to Chicago-ORD as UA3048. Another defect, which is not yet known, was discovered there, because the onward flight to San Francisco was massively delayed.