On Sunday, May 14, a Cargolux Boeing 747-4R7F registered as LX-OCV was performing a cargo flight from Luxembourg, Luxembourg to Chicago, Illinois when the crew reported a malfunction with the landing gear to air traffic controllers and requested an emergency return to Luxembourg’s airport and an opportunity to dump fuel in order to reduce the aircraft’s landing weight.

The aircraft’s detached landing gear sitting in the grass at Findel Airport

The aircraft, operating as flight LX6857 from Luxembourg Findel Airport to Chicago O’Hare International Airport made an emergency landing in Luxembourg when, upon arrival, a large portion of its right main landing gear assembly ceased to be attached to the aircraft and was effectively sent flying through the air. The incident was caught on video by the pilot of another aircraft on the ground, and can be viewed on Twitter.

The aircraft, LX-OCV, is 24 years old and was delivered to Cargolux in 1999. Following the incident, the aircraft was withdrawn from service.

The aircraft suffered extensive damage to its landing gear

No injuries have been reported, and although Cargolux has experienced some unlucky incidents in recent months, the airline is one of the safest in the skies, and has maintained an excellent safety record over the course of more than fifty years of service.

Article by CenTex Aviation for LuxPlanes

Photos: Airlive