Plane makes emergency landing at LAX after engine problems disrupt Newark-bound flight

A United Airlines plane heading from Los Angeles to Newark, New Jersey, returned to LAX for an emergency landing after a short time in the air on Monday morning.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration, United flight 2127 took off from LAX around 10:15 a.m. and turned around less than one hour later, making an emergency landing at about 11:19 a.m. local time after a left engine issue.

Upon arrival, crews met the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner jet on the runway and appeared to hose off its left engine, which was smoking. Aerial footage showed passengers using slides to exit the aircraft.

No injuries to passengers required hospitalization, the Los Angeles Fire Department said.

The FAA said a ground stop was issued at LAX until 12:30 p.m., but it was lifted a short time later. 

In a statement, United confirmed the incident and said passengers were bused back to the terminal.

“We’re working to get our customers to their final destinations,” the airline said.

When asked for comment, LAX referred CBS LA back to United, which shared another statement thanking the pilots and flight attendants for their “quick actions to keep our customers safe.”

Smoke billowing from the engine of a United Airlines plane that was evacuated on the runway at LAX on Monday, March 2, 2026.

CBS LA

Harry Gestetner was a passenger aboard the plane on Monday. He said that the moment is one he’ll never forget. 

“Sort of a surreal feeling to be sprinting away from a flaming plane on the tarmac at LAX,” he said. 

When the plane began to make loud knocking noises that reverberated through the cabin just after takeoff, Gestetner knew that something was wrong. He said that the flight attendants rushed to the windows, where they began to tell each other there was a fire in the engine. 

One of those flight attendants, he says, even told him to brace for impact while experiencing a panic attack.

“I think we were particularly worried given we were in the exit row, which, you know, we found out the hard way is not just for extra leg room.”

When the crew extended the slide to evacuate the passengers, he was the second person out. Some other passengers were able to de-board from the plane’s stairs, including music producer Terry Lewis. 

“I got to go down the stairs, so mine was really easy,” Lewis said. “But, I imagine going down that slide was not fun.”

He said that he was on his way to New York to meet up with his partner Jimmy Jam, with whom he has paired up with to form an iconic production duo for more than three decades.

“We’re headed to New York to do a lot of press and some television, we’re gonna do Good Morning America, and Kelly and Marc on Wednesday and Tamron Hall on Wednesday,” Lewis said. “So, that is where I’m still gonna go.”

As for Gestetner, who said he is actually moving to the East Coast, he’s spending a couple more days decompressing in Southern California.

FAA investigators are still looking into the incident as they work to determine what caused the fire.