Orlando Sanford Airport (SFB) was shut down this afternoon after an Allegiant Air jet made an emergency landing. Allegiant Air Flight 758 experienced "a hydraulic problem related to the nose gear," according to an FAA spokeswoman quoted by news media. The aircraft landed on its main gear only, after the nose gear failed to deploy.News photos of the accident scene, on Florida's WFTV, show what appears to be an MD80 series aircraft with its nose planted directly on the runway. An emergency slide is clearly visible, deployed from the 1R door.
Soon after the accident, Local6.com reported that the 147 passengers and crew were evacuated via emergency slides. One woman suffered a sprained ankle in the evacuation, but there were no other injuries.
Later news reports said that there were 157 people on the flight, which originated in Portsmouth, NH.
At one point Local6.com referred to the event as a "hard landing." Maybe "hard" as in "difficult" -- but judging from the photos, it probably was not just a hard landing in the usual sense!
[Photo Source]
