A British Airways flight from Las Vegas to London safely completed its transatlantic journey despite losing a landing gear wheel during take off on Monday, in a dramatic incident captured on live video and now under investigation by aviation regulators.

More News

Incident Over Las Vegas: What Happened During Take Off

The incident occurred on the evening of Monday, January 26, 2026, at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas. British Airways flight BA274, an Airbus A350 1000 bound for London Heathrow, was departing from runway 26R when one of the wheels on its right main landing gear detached shortly after liftoff. Video from an automated airport livestream shows sparks appearing near the gear roughly 40 seconds into the take off roll, followed by the wheel separating and falling to the airfield.

According to tracking data and multiple aviation reports, the aircraft continued climbing normally after the wheel dropped and proceeded on its planned route across the Atlantic. There were no reports of injuries on board or on the ground, and airport officials later confirmed that the detached wheel was recovered from the airfield without damage to airport infrastructure.

Flight BA274 landed at London Heathrow approximately nine hours and 15 minutes later, arriving slightly ahead of schedule. Photographs circulating among aviation watchers after landing appeared to show the right main landing gear missing one of its six wheels, confirming what ground observers in Las Vegas had seen hours earlier.

Aircraft Details and Built In Redundancy

The aircraft involved was an Airbus A350 1000, the largest variant of Airbus’s long haul A350 family and a mainstay of British Airways’ intercontinental fleet. The type is certified to operate at high weights on long nonstop routes and is designed with significant redundancy across its critical systems, including the landing gear.

The A350 1000’s main landing gear comprises two six wheel bogies, one under each wing root. In total, the main gear carries 12 wheels arranged in three pairs on each side. Aviation specialists note that this configuration allows the aircraft to sustain the loss of a single wheel and still land safely, provided that other systems remain functional and the crew follow appropriate procedures. In this incident, reports indicate that the wheel which detached was the rearmost outer wheel on the right main gear bogie, one of the positions that carries a share of the aircraft’s weight during take off and landing but is not individually critical to the structural integrity of the assembly.

Engineers say that while any loss of a wheel in flight is serious, commercial airliners are engineered so that such a failure does not automatically compromise the safety of passengers or crew. After departure from Las Vegas, the British Airways crew would have worked with company operations and engineering teams, as well as air traffic control and maintenance controllers, to calculate landing performance with one wheel missing and to coordinate a normal but closely monitored arrival into Heathrow.

Airline and Airport Responses

British Airways confirmed the incident and emphasized that the aircraft landed safely in London. In a brief statement, the airline said that safety and security underpin all of its operations and that it is supporting the authorities with their investigation. The carrier did not disclose how many passengers and crew were on board the flight, but the A350 1000 in British Airways configuration typically carries around 330 to 350 passengers.

Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas confirmed that a wheel from a departing British Airways aircraft had fallen to the airfield shortly after take off. Airport officials reported no injuries and no impact on airport operations beyond the immediate response required to locate and secure the detached wheel. Ground crews retrieved the tire from within the airport boundaries, ensuring that no foreign object debris remained on or near the runway.

Flight operations at the busy desert hub continued with minimal disruption. Any necessary inspection of the runway surface and nearby taxiways would typically be carried out soon after such an incident to ensure that no damage or debris poses a risk to subsequent departures and arrivals.

Regulatory Investigation and Safety Review

The US Federal Aviation Administration has opened an investigation into the incident. The agency said British Airways flight 274 lost a tire during take off from Las Vegas around 8:45 p.m. local time and later landed safely at Heathrow. Investigators are expected to examine maintenance records, component histories, and any data from the aircraft’s onboard systems to determine why the wheel separated.

In most wheel loss events, investigators look closely at the condition of the affected tire and wheel assembly, including the axle, hubs, bearings, and associated hardware. A failure could stem from material fatigue, an undetected crack, incorrect installation, improper torque on fasteners, or damage sustained during a previous landing or taxi. The investigative process also examines inspection intervals and whether all required checks were carried out and documented.

Depending on what the inquiry uncovers, regulators may issue safety recommendations or airworthiness directives affecting not just British Airways but other operators of the same aircraft type or gear system. These could include additional inspections, design modifications, or updated maintenance procedures. However, such steps typically follow a detailed technical analysis and can take weeks or months to finalize.

Passenger Experience On Board BA274

As of the latest reports, there have been no widespread, detailed passenger accounts describing dramatic events on board, which suggests that most travelers may not have been immediately aware of what had occurred during take off. The wheel separation happened below and behind the cabin windows, in an area typically out of sight of passengers. With no sudden loss of control, decompression, or abrupt maneuvers, it is likely that the initial climb felt normal inside the aircraft.

On long haul flights where an aircraft experiences a technical issue that does not endanger safety, crews may choose to inform passengers once they have clear information and a plan agreed with company operations and air traffic control. Whether and how that happened on BA274 has not been fully detailed publicly. What is clear is that the flight continued to London without diversion, indicating that the pilots and airline engineering staff were confident in the aircraft’s performance and landing capabilities despite the missing wheel.

On arrival into Heathrow, emergency services would typically be placed on standby as a precaution whenever an aircraft lands with an abnormal gear configuration or suspected gear damage. However, available reports describe the landing as uneventful. After passengers disembarked, ground images of the main landing gear circulated online, displaying the bare hub where the missing wheel should have been.

Context: Recent Gear and Tire Incidents in Commercial Aviation

While visually dramatic, the loss of a wheel or tire is not entirely unprecedented in modern commercial aviation. In recent years, there have been several widely reported incidents involving aircraft arriving or departing with missing or damaged wheels, often captured on video or discovered only after landing. In many of these cases, aircraft landed safely without injuries, underlining the built in robustness of landing gear systems.

Earlier in January 2026, a United Airlines jet arriving in Orlando reportedly lost a nose wheel during a hard landing, with video showing the detached wheel rolling away across the airfield. In March 2024, a United Airlines Boeing 777 departing San Francisco bound for Japan shed a tire shortly after take off, sending the wheel into an airport parking lot and damaging several vehicles but causing no injuries. In both cases, the aircraft diverted and landed safely at alternate airports with emergency services on alert.

These events, while rare in comparison to the millions of flights that operate safely every year, tend to attract significant public attention thanks to vivid imagery and social media sharing. They also often prompt calls for closer scrutiny of maintenance practices, even when investigations later find no systemic safety issue. For airlines and regulators, each incident becomes another data point in the broader effort to continuously improve safety margins.

Implications for British Airways and the Airbus A350 Fleet

For British Airways, the Las Vegas incident is likely to trigger an internal technical and operational review alongside the formal regulatory investigation. The airline operates a growing fleet of Airbus A350 1000s on long haul routes from London, and any potential concern about the landing gear, wheel assemblies, or maintenance routines will be treated with high priority. Although there is currently no suggestion of a fleet wide ground stop or urgent directive, airlines typically conduct precautionary inspections of similar components across their fleets when an event like this occurs.

From a fleet management standpoint, the aircraft involved is expected to remain out of revenue service while inspections and any necessary repairs or component replacements are completed. Tracking data indicated that the A350 remained on the ground at Heathrow for many hours after its arrival as technicians assessed the damage and determined the work required. Depending on the extent of any secondary damage around the gear attachment points or braking system, that process could range from routine component replacement to more involved structural inspection.

For Airbus and component suppliers, investigators’ findings may influence future design refinements or updated service bulletins. The A350 family has built a strong safety and reliability record since entering commercial service, and any isolated failure affecting one wheel assembly would not in itself imply a fundamental design flaw. However, manufacturers monitor such incidents closely and collaborate with operators and regulators to ensure that lessons learned are widely communicated across the global fleet.

FAQ

Q1. Did passengers on the British Airways flight know a wheel had fallen off?
Most available reports suggest that passengers were not immediately aware that a wheel had detached during take off. The separation occurred beneath the cabin and did not cause a significant disturbance, so many travelers likely only learned of the incident after landing or through media coverage.

Q2. How could the aircraft safely fly to London with a missing wheel?
The Airbus A350 1000 has 12 main landing gear wheels, arranged in two six wheel assemblies. The loss of a single wheel does not prevent the aircraft from landing safely, as the design includes redundancy and the remaining wheels can distribute the load, provided all other systems are functioning normally.

Q3. Why did the pilots not turn back to Las Vegas?
Once the crew and airline engineers evaluated the situation, they concluded that the aircraft was structurally safe to continue to London and could land within certified performance limits with one wheel missing. Turning back is not always required if the aircraft can safely complete the planned flight and there are no other technical issues.

Q4. Who is investigating the incident?
The US Federal Aviation Administration is leading the investigation on the US side because the wheel separation occurred during departure from Las Vegas. British and European aviation authorities, along with British Airways and Airbus, are expected to cooperate and share data as part of the wider safety review.

Q5. How often do commercial airliners lose wheels or tires?
Wheel or tire loss events are rare when compared with the enormous number of flights operated every year. They do occasionally occur worldwide, usually without injuries, and almost always prompt a formal investigation and a review of maintenance and inspection procedures.

Q6. Was the runway or airport damaged in Las Vegas?
Airport officials in Las Vegas have said that the detached wheel was recovered on the airfield and that there were no reported injuries or damage to airport property. Standard practice after such an incident includes inspecting the runway and taxiways for any impact marks or debris.

Q7. What happens to the aircraft now that it has landed?
After arrival at Heathrow, the aircraft was taken out of service so that maintenance crews could inspect the landing gear, wheel assembly, and any potentially affected systems. The jet will only return to passenger service once repairs are complete and all regulatory and internal safety checks are satisfied.

Q8. Does this incident mean the Airbus A350 is unsafe?
There is no indication at present that the Airbus A350 type as a whole is unsafe. The aircraft has a strong safety record in global operations. Investigators will determine whether this was a one off component failure, a maintenance related issue, or something that warrants broader attention across the fleet.

Q9. Will this affect British Airways flights from Las Vegas or other routes?
British Airways has not announced any schedule changes linked directly to this incident. Depending on how long the affected aircraft remains out of service, the airline may adjust equipment or swap aircraft on some routes, but passengers are unlikely to see major disruptions as a direct result.

Q10. What should passengers take away from this event about flying safety?
While the images of a wheel dropping from an airliner are unsettling, the key takeaway is that the aircraft remained fully controllable and landed safely as designed. Commercial aviation incorporates multiple layers of redundancy and oversight, and when unusual events occur, they are rigorously investigated so that any necessary improvements can be made across the system.