Scare as Silverstone Airplane loses rear tyre during takeoff

A Silverstone Air plane. [Maarufu Mohamed, Standard]

News of a Silverstone Air plane's rear wheel falling during takeoff from the Lodwar airstrip in Turkana County yesterday caused panic among members of the public.

The plane that was carrying four passengers and five crew members en-route to Nairobi landed at the Eldoret International Airport.

The detached wheel was recovered by members of the public, who took it to the airstrip manager's office.

In a statement after the incident, Silverstone Air said all the nine people on board were unharmed.

Experienced incident

“We would like to confirm that earlier today, our flight Dash 8-300 from Lodwar to Nairobi experienced an incident during takeoff and as a result lost the number 3-wheel assembly,” read the statement.

“Silverstone Air has activated its contingency plans and the customers affected were rebooked and have since landed safely in Nairobi."

Uasin Gishu Police Commander Johnstone Ipara said they received a distress call at around 9.30am from their counterparts in Lodwar, informing them that one of the plane's wheels had fallen off.

“We immediately assembled a multi-agency response team and rushed to Eldoret International Airport. We laud the pilot for navigating the plane professionally despite the panic to ensure all those on board came out safe,” Mr Ipara said.

The incident comes barely two weeks after another plane operated by Silverstone Air crashed at Wilson Airport shortly after takeoff.

The plane was leaving Nairobi for Lamu on October 11 when it skidded off the runway.

Yesterday, after the incident, several Kenyans took to social media to raise pertinent issues concerning the airline's safety standards.