While it remains to be seen what caused this, it doesn’t look great, especially for a brand new aircraft…
In this post:
Lufthansa Boeing 787 nose gear collapses at gate
A Reddit user shares pictures of a Lufthansa Boeing 787-9 with collapsed nose gear at Frankfurt Airport (FRA). The plane in question has the registration code D-ABPQ, and it’s a new Dreamliner with Allegris interiors.
There’s also an airport CCTV video of the collapse happening.
This plane just entered long haul service with Lufthansa on February 13, 2026, so it has been flying for under four months. Today, the plane was scheduled to fly to Los Angeles (LAX), operating as flight LH450. However, as you’d expect, the flight was canceled (if you were booked on the flight, don’t forget to claim EC261, if eligible!).
Presumably this plane will be out of service for quite some time, and hopefully there were no injuries in this incident.
What could’ve caused this nose landing gear collapse?
Details about what caused this incident remain to be seen. The pictures show the unit load device (ULD) attached to the forward right cargo hold, along with the two jet bridges pulled up to the two forward left doors (though as you’d expect, the forward one is especially unaligned). You can also see the landing gear panel ripped off. The video, meanwhile, shows the forward gear just collapsing, without the aircraft being hit by anything.
While it’s possible this is completely unrelated, this reminds me of a June 2021 incident, where the nose landing gear collapsed on a British Airways Boeing 787-8.
An investigation later determined how that happened:
- While the plane was being loaded with cargo, a procedure was being carried out with regards to some deferred maintenance
- The procedure required the cockpit landing gear selection lever to be cycled with hydraulic power applied to the aircraft
- To prevent the landing gear from retracting, the procedure required pins to be inserted into the nose and main landing gear downlocks
- The nose landing gear downlock pin was accidentally inserted into the wrong hole — it was put into the apex pin bore, adjacent to the correct location
- As a result, when the landing gear selector was cycled, the nose landing gear retracted
For what it’s worth, it took around five months for that plane to return to service, so I’d expect this Lufthansa Dreamliner to be grounded for quite some time as well.
Could something similar have happened here? Was the forward landing gear somehow accidentally retracted, or was there some sort of malfunction or glitch? Whatever caused this, whoever is at fault for this probably has quite a bit of explaining to do…
Bottom line
A Lufthansa Boeing 787 suffered a mysterious forward gear collapse today at a gate at Frankfurt Airport, prior to a flight to Los Angeles. It remains to be seen what caused this, but it definitely represents some major damage, and this plane will be out of service for an extended period of time.
This scene looks very similar to a 2021 incident involving a British Airways 787, though the causes could be completely unrelated.
What do you make of this Lufthansa 787 gear collapse situation?
To state in your article „Make sure you claim your compensation“ before you even write and think about possible injuries, that’s a new low Ben !!!
What is wrong with you people these days? All about ME ME ME all the time !!!!! No wonder the world has come to what it is ! Sad. I would have expected different from you !
@ Norddeutscher -- I mentioned both points, though? The two aren't mutually exclusive. I simply mentioned the compensation point first because it was in the context of the flight to LAX being canceled.
This comment section just shows the best many of you know about aviation is how to get on a plane and not much else.
The only way a Dreamliner can do this is if it’s undergoing landing gear maintenance and the pin that locks the gears from collapsing has not been put in the correct hole and if it’s not when raising the landing gear during said test. It will actually go up because the...
This comment section just shows the best many of you know about aviation is how to get on a plane and not much else.
The only way a Dreamliner can do this is if it’s undergoing landing gear maintenance and the pin that locks the gears from collapsing has not been put in the correct hole and if it’s not when raising the landing gear during said test. It will actually go up because the ground measure that prevents landing gears from responding on the ground has been overridden in order to test the fix.
It’s happened before on Dreamliners. Last was in 2021 on a BA Boeing 787-8. You can tell that the gear is undergoing maintenance seeing as the landing gear doors are open.
I'm sick of these hit pieces about Boeing and the planes having problems while no one talks about Airbus and their shoddy quality.
Boeing Models 787, 737-M remain poor us-building quality.
the new 777 I will never ever sit in early....
Boeing Models 787, 733-M remain poor us-building quality.
the new 777 I will never ever sit in early....
You can just say you don’t know what happened instead of blaming Boeing for what isn’t their fault. The lock pin used for landing gear maintenance was not used. The plane collapsed because the landing gear toggle was triggered to test a fix.
First, good to see that the guy standing right next to it didn't get injured.
Second, why the hell put several holes where the same pin apparently fits right next to one that is so critical? Sounds like poor design to me. Just make that pin a different shape and colour and make the hole match. Most people already learn in kindergarten how to do that, but apparently it's rocket science for Boeing engineers....
First, good to see that the guy standing right next to it didn't get injured.
Second, why the hell put several holes where the same pin apparently fits right next to one that is so critical? Sounds like poor design to me. Just make that pin a different shape and colour and make the hole match. Most people already learn in kindergarten how to do that, but apparently it's rocket science for Boeing engineers. We don't know if it's the cause here, yet, but if it happened, then it's really telling that it already happened twice. Anyway, we'll see this bird again in half a year or so. :)
There are 1100 787s in service. This has happened 5 times. How about you focus on your job. The holes are clearly labelled and Boeing has made it clear several times.
Why won’t you pay attention to what you’re doing? If you can’t why work in such a critical industry that needs full attention.
By the stats most people do but then we have to blame Boeing because somebody did not pay attention in class. A joke
Boeing, what else
Were 2 people seating together in the Allegris F middle suite?
On a serious note, the ground staff was so lucky. I'm happy to see that, based on the footage, nobody was injured. (And the 787 doesn't have an F cabin)
Well, this particular 787 did get F'd.
More like Allegris F'ed up, to be honest.
Gaaat daaayum… that’s bad. Hope everyone is alright. (Looks like maximum EU261 compensation, and rebooking or refunds, unless they claim ‘extraordinary circumstances,’ but it sure seems like failure by the airline to properly maintain their aircraft… not ‘the weather’ or whatever excuse.)
Disagree ... The airline didn't force the manufacturers' engineering . The pax assume the risk of a delayed flight because of these extraordinary circumstances of the plane's collapse . Likely similar outcome if an FA collapsed due to unrequited romanticism .
Bah! Alert, you're wrong, but you're funny.
Looks like Homer is getting another free trip anywhere in the USA (except Alaska and Hawaii).
“…the freak states.” LOL
"New" plane implies it's new from the factory. Flying for almost four months reduces (but doesn't eliminate) the possibility of a production flaw.
My initial response was, "Did someone in the flight deck push the gear override and raise it?" But the mains do not appear to have started to tuck in at all. My money is on a maintenance procedure not being correctly followed.
Hope we get to hear the answer.
This is s reason we do not walk under airplanes, rare as it is. Glad I am not hearing injuries or deaths.
The nose gear tripped over a trip wire .
…. It definitely misbehaved Albert.
No doubt that when Walter Mitty Dunn has slept off his hangover, he will tell us all that it could never happen to Delta.
I’m afraid that this is not a good look ORD, are you sure that you are still in denial about the Airbus products?
Allegris interior too heavy? Maybe they needed a counterweight, like the SWISS A330s.
Doink
Wow that guy on the side had he been a few feet closer would had been killed.
Lucky .
Maybe it's due to the the McDonnell Douglas quality that Boeing builds into each of its new planes.
#NeverForget
OR OR OR, you don’t actually know much about aviation, which is okay