American Airlines Flight 3280, a Boeing 737-800 bound for Charlotte, blew two tyres while taxiing for departure at Chicago O’Hare International Airport on Wednesday afternoon. Passengers deplaned via stairs and were bused back to the terminal, while the Federal Aviation Administration opened an investigation into the incident.
The aircraft came to a stop before take-off and no injuries were reported. The airline arranged a replacement aircraft for the disrupted service, underscoring the operational impact at one of the busiest hubs in the United States. The incident follows a run of recent tyre-related events at O’Hare, although the cause of this latest failure has not been confirmed. No official finding has linked it to prolonged hot-weather taxiing.