A WB-57 pilot made a daring hero landing in Houston after its aircraft's landing gear failed, narrowly avoiding disaster. The emergency landing was captured on video by KHOU 11 television and showed the plane touching down without its landing gear extended before the pilot managed to bring it under control.
The crew of the aircraft were not harmed during the incident, according to NASA spokesperson Bethany Stevens. She explained that a mechanical issue with one of the agency's WB-57s resulted in the emergency landing at Ellington Field. A thorough investigation will be conducted by NASA into the cause of the malfunction, and all crew members are safe.
The WB-57 aircraft, which was first developed in 1944 by the English Electric Company, has a long history of use by the US military. The plane was used for bombing missions in Vietnam and other conflicts, as well as for scientific research, including weather reconnaissance and studying the upper atmosphere. A variant of the aircraft, known as the WB-57, was designed with longer wings to fly even higher, reaching altitudes of up to 62,000 feet.
NASA has been flying the WB-57s since 1972 as part of a science mission, using them to study various phenomena such as cosmic dust samples from comets and asteroids, clouds, and the environmental impact of rocket launches. The aircraft were also due to be used in a similar manner for the Artemis II lunar mission.
It is not yet clear whether the damage to this particular WB-57 is repairable, or how it will affect plans for future scientific research missions. However, NASA has assured that all crew members are safe and that a thorough investigation into the cause of the malfunction is underway.
The crew of the aircraft were not harmed during the incident, according to NASA spokesperson Bethany Stevens. She explained that a mechanical issue with one of the agency's WB-57s resulted in the emergency landing at Ellington Field. A thorough investigation will be conducted by NASA into the cause of the malfunction, and all crew members are safe.
The WB-57 aircraft, which was first developed in 1944 by the English Electric Company, has a long history of use by the US military. The plane was used for bombing missions in Vietnam and other conflicts, as well as for scientific research, including weather reconnaissance and studying the upper atmosphere. A variant of the aircraft, known as the WB-57, was designed with longer wings to fly even higher, reaching altitudes of up to 62,000 feet.
NASA has been flying the WB-57s since 1972 as part of a science mission, using them to study various phenomena such as cosmic dust samples from comets and asteroids, clouds, and the environmental impact of rocket launches. The aircraft were also due to be used in a similar manner for the Artemis II lunar mission.
It is not yet clear whether the damage to this particular WB-57 is repairable, or how it will affect plans for future scientific research missions. However, NASA has assured that all crew members are safe and that a thorough investigation into the cause of the malfunction is underway.
. It's a miracle no one got hurt, but this raises some red flags. I'm not saying the crew's gonna be fired or anything, but maybe they should've done more checks before taking off 
. And what's with all these high-altitude flights? All that stress must take its toll on the plane 
. Can't say for sure if it's repairable, but NASA's gotta get to the bottom of this. We don't wanna lose our cosmic dust sample collection skills 
...
The investigation will likely reveal some interesting insights into what went wrong. Fingers crossed for safe skies ahead! 
Just watched that crazy video of the WB-57 landing without its gear 
Anyways, did you know that the WB-57 has a pretty cool history? It's been flying since 1944 and has seen some wild stuff - from bombing missions in Vietnam to studying cosmic dust from comets 
and it turns out that since 1972, they've had like, 5 major failures 
. But don't worry, the crew is safe and all! 
Here's a chart of NASA's WB-57 mission success rates over the years: 
Anyway, I'm kinda curious to see how this latest malfunction affects plans for future missions... 
! I'm just glad no one got hurt, that's all that matters. but seriously, what was going through the pilot's mind during that crazy moment? did they even have time to freak out or were they just chillin' and making it happen?
. lets hope it doesn't affect their plans for future missions...
. 
NASA needs to get to the bottom of it ASAP! 
It's not like it's a big deal or anything... just your average, everyday aircraft malfunction. 
But seriously, glad no one was hurt! Those astronauts must've had some crazy skills to handle that emergency landing. 
... we don't want our space travel plans getting canceled due to a faulty plane 
.
. that wb-57 has been around since 1944? whoa, time flies right? 
also, i'm curious to know how they're gonna fix the plane now... hope it doesn't delay any future research missions 
It's a miracle no one got hurt during the landing or while fixing the plane afterwards! The fact that NASA has such an old aircraft (1944, wow!) and it still managed to make it work is just wild. And now they're not sure if it can be fixed... what does that mean for all those scientific research plans? 
nasa's got some explaining to do about how this happened tho...
. I mean, can you imagine being up in the air with your landing gear on the fritz? The fact that it was even possible to bring the plane under control without any serious damage is a testament to their training and expertise. It's not like they were just winging it (pun intended).
. And on the bright side, at least the crew is safe and sound! Silver linings, right? 
. Anyway, fingers crossed they can get this one flying again without any more drama 
just saw that video of the WB-57 emergency landing in Houston! The stats on its success rate are insane - 80% of flights completed with all systems go, but this one was a 100% emergency landing success 
the altitude record it can reach is crazy too, up to 62k feet! 