Smoke rises as NASA plane makes landing without its landing gear in Houston.

Nasa Aircraft Makes Emergency Landing in Houston

A NASA aircraft was forced to perform a “gear-up landing” in Houston on Tuesday due to a mechanical issue, as confirmed by NASA spokeswoman Bethany Stevens in a post on X.

“Today, one of NASA’s WB-57 aircraft faced a mechanical problem and landed gear-up at Ellington Field. The incident is being addressed, and all crew members are currently safe,” she wrote in the afternoon update.

She also mentioned that, as is standard with incidents like this, NASA will carry out a comprehensive investigation into what went wrong, ensuring that updates will be shared with the public.

On Wednesday, Stevens reported that the crew members are in good health after undergoing routine medical checks.

Details of the Incident

“Following standard medical evaluations at Ellington Field, the two WB-57 crew members, both NASA employees, are safe. The incident involved the aircraft tail number NASA927, which took off for a routine training flight around 10:19 a.m. CST and landed about an hour later,” Stevens explained.

“NASA is leading a thorough investigation, and more details will follow once it concludes. Current operations for Artemis II shouldn’t be affected, as there are multiple aviation assets available, including the Gulfstream V, Gulfstream III, and U.S. Navy C-20, which will help with critical mission imagery,” she stated.

Video footage from the landing showed smoke and what looked like flame or sparks as the plane approached the runway.

The Federal Aviation Administration noted that “the Martin WB-57 landed at Ellington Airport in Houston around 11:25 a.m. local time on January 27. There were two people aboard, and the FAA is launching an investigation.”

Background on the WB-57 Aircraft

According to information from the NASA Airborne Science Program, the WB-57 has been utilized for research flights for many years. The NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston oversees its operations.