The hard landing of an American Airlines flight at Kahului Airport (OGG) in Maui led to six people being hospitalized on January 27. American Airlines flight 271 (AA 271) flew from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and landed at the main airport serving Maui at approximately 2:00 p.m. local time. The hard landing created minor injuries for one passenger and five flight attendants. All six people were later released from the hospital.

The Incident

AA 271 was already delayed before takeoff since it taxied at LAX for over an hour before departing. It is unclear why the flight spent additional time at LAX since there was no severe weather or any other event that would have affected airport operations on January 27. The flight had 167 passengers and seven crew members. Authorities at Kahului Airport expected the flight to arrive at 12:47 p.m. local time.

The reason behind the flight's hard landing when it arrived at Kahului more than one hour later than anticipated is currently unknown. It could not have been weather since it was 80 degrees Fahrenheit (27 degrees Celsius) and partly cloudy at the time. American removed the plane, identified with registration N416AN, from service and will inspect it for further issues. The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the cause of the incident.

American Airlines released this statement about the incident to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser:

"American Airlines flight 271 with service from Los Angeles to Maui experienced an issue upon landing in OGG (Kahului Airport). The aircraft taxied to the gate under its own power and customers deplaned normally. The aircraft was taken out of service for inspection by our maintenance team. The safety of our customers is our top priority."

The Route

AA 271 operates daily from Los Angeles to Kahului using an Airbus A321neo. The flight lasts approximately six hours, generally departing from Los Angeles around 8:50 a.m. and arriving in Kahului at about 12:45 p.m. local time. The return flight, AA 212, flies passengers from Kahului to Los Angeles in around five hours and 20 minutes. American Airlines also serves Kahului through nonstop flights from Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) and Phoenix (PHX). 

American Airlines' A321neos can accommodate 196 passengers across three cabin classes. The aircraft has 129 seats in Main Cabin, 47 in Main Cabin Extra, and 20 recliner-style seats in First Class. American offers direct flights connecting Los Angeles to Hawaii's four largest and most populated islands: O'ahu, Kaua'i, Maui, and the Island of Hawaii. Aside from Kahului, the airline serves Honolulu (HNL), Kailua-Kona (KOA), and Lihue (LIH) from LAX. All American Airlines routes between Los Angeles and Hawaii use the A321neo. 

Related Incidents

This incident is not the only one American Airlines has faced this month. On January 19, American Eagle flight 5811 (AA 5811) slid off the taxiway after landing at Greater Rochester International Airport (ROC) in Rochester, New York. This flight, operated using an Embraer ERJ-145, landed safely at approximately 4:00 p.m. local time but could not go to the terminal without slipping. Light snow created slippery conditions on the runway, causing the aircraft to enter the grass. 

Any upcoming issues with American Airlines planes would likely occur due to winter weather, with many parts of the U.S. already seeing heavy snow and extreme cold. Although American does not operate the embattled Boeing 737 MAX 9, the carrier could also be affected by any other technical issues facing Boeing aircraft that arise in the future.