An Alaska Airlines plane is expected to depart Wrangell on Wednesday after spending several days in town for replacement of a failed engine.
The right-hand engine — the starboard side — failed as northbound Flight 65 was just starting its takeoff roll on Friday, Oct. 23.
Within a second or two of starting to rev up the engines and roll for takeoff, “there was a loud pop off the right side,” said Orin Pierson, a passenger on the flight who was sitting near the wing.
“Most of the passengers were silent,” said Pierson, who is the publisher of the Petersburg Pilot newspaper.
The plane did not swerve and there was no smoke, he said.
From his window seat, he could see the airplane crew and airline ground personnel inspecting the engine after the plane pulled up at the terminal. Within a few minutes of the incident, Pierson said, the pilot announced, “We experienced an engine failure and this plane isn’t going anywhere.”
All of the passengers disembarked and their baggage was taken off. The plane was moved away from the terminal to await repairs.
A replacement engine was flown into Wrangell on Sunday, Tim Thompson, the airline’s director of public relations, reported in an email Monday morning. “The repairs are underway and expected to be completed by Wednesday.”
On Friday, the airline chartered Breakaway Adventures, filling two of their boats to ferry travelers to Petersburg.
Alaska Airlines flew in another aircraft early that evening to pick up passengers from the stricken plane and take them to their destinations in Juneau and Anchorage.
