A military aircraft made an emergency landing at Milwaukee's Mitchell International Airport after experiencing what appears to be a lightning strike Wednesday afternoon. The crew safely landed and exited the aircraft, according to a spokesman at the Wisconsin Air National Guard's 128th Air Refueling Wing.
The KC-135 aircraft blew out two of its tires as it landed amid thick plumes of smoke. Emergency vehicles surrounded the plane after it came to a stop.
A WISN (Channel 12) photographer at the scene reportedly heard "multiple explosions" as the plane approached its landing.
The runway was temporarily closed so that a rescue team could perform response tasks. The 128 ARW Maintenance Group sent out a tow team to tow the aircraft off the runway in order to resume normal operations at the airport.
According to the National Guard spokesman, an investigation into the cause of the emergency will be initiated.
The KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft is based out of General Mitchell Air National Guard Base.
Due to the blown-out tires, the aircraft remained disabled on the runway for an hour-and-half. It was towed off the runway at 4:00 p.m. The runway later opened and the airport resumed all normal operations.
"The aircraft maintenance groups did a great job getting this aircraft off of the runway as quickly as possible," an airport spokesman said. "So my hats off to them."
Original article can be found here ➤ https://www.jsonline.com
MILWAUKEE — A lightning strike over Chicago prompted an in-flight emergency aboard a military plane on Wednesday afternoon, prompting emergency vehicles to surround the aircraft after it made a smokey landing at Milwaukee's Mitchell International Airport, officials said.
A WISN 12 NEWS photographer who was on scene said he heard "multiple explosions" as the KC-135 aircraft came in for a landing.
Two tires that were blown during the landing needed to be replaced on the runway before the plane could be moved to the Wisconsin Air National Guard's 128th Air Refueling Wing.
The work temporarily closed the airport to inbound and outbound flights. The airport reopened just after 4 p.m.
The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker is a military aerial refueling aircraft.
Story and video ➤ http://www.wisn.com
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