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LaGuardia close call raises winter safety questions

A Delta jet skidded off a runway during a snowstorm Thursday, and a heavy crane overnight lifted the aircraft away from the fence it plowed through
Delta jet nearly skids into icy bay by LaGuardia Airport 04:04

NEW YORK -- The rough landing of a Delta jetliner at LaGuardia Airport in a driving snowstorm just minutes after the runway had been plowed has raised questions about when airports should close runways due to snow or ice.

Six people were hurt when the plane skidded off a runway midday Thursday and crashed through a chain-link fence, its nose coming to rest just feet from the roiling waters of an icy Flushing Bay. The nose was leaning on a berm that separates the runway from the bay.

The plane was removed with cranes overnight and taken to a hangar, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which runs the airport, said Friday. It wasn't known yet when Runway 13, one of two at the airport, would reopen.

"If we wouldn't have hit the snowbank, we'd be in the water right now," said Charles Runels, a passenger from Atlanta.

"We thought that we were in the water, everybody thought it was in the water and then they opened the back door and all the snow and things fell out and then the firemen came around helping everybody," another passenger told CBS New York.

The flight from Atlanta to New York was carrying 127 passengers and five crew members.

There's no rule about how much snow or ice leads to a runway closing. Instead, the Federal Aviation Administration requires airports to measure runways during winter storms to assure planes can safely brake: A specially equipped vehicle races down the runway with a computer checking braking action, and if the runway fails the test, it must be closed.

The runway had been plowed minutes before, and two other pilots had reported good braking conditions, said Patrick Foye, executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which runs the airport. It appeared the pilot did everything he could to slow the aircraft, he said.

"The plane did not make contact with the water," Foye said. "Happily, that was not a risk today."

The National Transportation Safety Board said it was sending an investigator to retrieve the plane's flight data and cockpit voice recorders and to document damage to the plane.

LaGuardia, known for its disconcertingly close proximity to the bay, is one of the most congested airports in the United States. It's also one of the most difficult at which to land: Its close proximity to three other busy airports means pilots have to make a series of tight turns to line up with its runways while also going through their landing checklists.

Former FAA official "shocked" chutes didn't deploy in LaGuardia runway crash 06:13

LaGuardia's two runways are "reasonably short" but still safe, said former US Airways pilot John M. Cox, who's now CEO of consultancy Safety Operating Systems.

At airports with longer runways, pilots glide a few feet above the runway and gently touch down. At LaGuardia, Cox said, "you put the airplane on the ground and stop it."

On Flight 1086 from Atlanta, passengers said there was a surreal calm as the plane bounced and slid off the runway, but some children started crying after it came to a stop. It was only then that everyone realized how close they had come to plunging into freezing saltwater.

Capt. Chesley Sullenberger weighs in on LaGuardia jet skid 08:23

Passengers were told to exit over the broken right wing because the door out the back was too close to the water. The plane's emergency slides didn't deploy. Passengers climbed off the plane dressed in their heavy winter coats and scarves and tromped through several inches of snow.

"As we walked across the runway, it was covered with so much snow that I was wondering: Who decided it was safe to land here?" said passenger Jane Kaufman, of Gainesville, Florida.

The plane was towed away late Thursday into early Friday to enable airport officials to reopen the runway, reports CBS News correspondent Jericka Duncan. Massive cranes were used to hoist up the fuselage.

Mark Rosenker, a CBS News aviation safety expert and a former chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, says investigators will scrutinize the pilots' actions and look for any possible equipment failures.

Delta plane skids off the runway at NYC's LaGuardia Airport 08:29

"They're going to be looking very carefully (for instance) at the thrust reversers. Did they deploy when they were supposed to?" Rosenker said.

The last time a plane went into the waters off LaGuardia was almost 23 years ago. A US Air flilght bound for Cleveland crashed on takeoff in bad weather. Twenty-seven people were killed.

Delta 1086's passengers were grateful they avoided a similar fate.

"You get off the plane and see the wing gone, that close to the water -- you know, I count myself very, very lucky," Timothy Moore told CBS News.

Among the passengers was New York Giants tight end Larry Donnell, who said he felt blessed to be safe after the scary landing.

"I feel fine physically and hopefully all the other passengers did not have any significant injuries," Donnell said in an email. "We were all shocked and alarmed when the plane started to skid, but most importantly, as far as I know, all of the passengers and flight crew were able to exit the plane safely."


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