ATLANTA, GEORGIA – There is a fragile physics to the moment a 150-ton machine transitions from the grace of flight to the friction of the earth. On the evening of January 6, 2026, that transition turned violent for LATAM Airlines Peru flight LA2482. Upon touching down at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), the Boeing 767-300ER suffered a catastrophic failure of its entire main landing gear assembly, blowing all eight main tyres in a shower of rubber and sparks.

The aircraft, a Boeing 767-316(ER) registered as CC-CXF, had just completed a nearly seven-hour journey from Lima, Peru. What began as a routine descent into the world’s busiest aviation hub ended with the widebody jet paralysed on Runway 26R, its landing gear resting on shredded carcasses of reinforced rubber.

“Endless Rumble Strips”

The incident occurred at approximately 7:38 PM EST. Witnesses and passengers described a touchdown that was "unusually firm," immediately followed by a sensory assault of vibrations and sound. The force was so significant that it reverberated through the cabin structure, dislodging interior fixtures and tearing at least one lavatory door from its hinges.

According to preliminary reports from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA):

“Several tyres on the aircraft's main landing gear blew out, though the flight crew maintained control and brought the aircraft to a stop on the runway without further incident.”

For those inside the cabin, the technical description did little to capture the visceral experience. As noted in early passenger accounts:

“The aircraft's landing was described as extremely rough, with passengers reporting violent vibrations and a feeling akin to ‘endless rumble strips’ or a ‘sonic boom.’”

Emergency Response and Tarmac Evacuation

Atlanta Airport Fire and Rescue (ARFF) units were on the scene within minutes, meeting the immobilised jet amid clouds of smoke from the overheated braking cooling fans and friction-scorched metal. While there was no hull fire, the risk of a secondary blaze from the "partially melted" tyre remnants required the aircraft to be secured in situ.

In a profound display of modern safety protocols, all 200+ passengers and crew were evacuated directly onto the runway using mobile stairs and shuttled to the International Terminal by bus. Miraculously, despite the "jarring" G-forces and the cabin damage, no injuries were reported.

Operations Profile

The following table details the specific flight involved in the January 6th incident. Due to the ongoing investigation and the immobilisation of CC-CXF, return flights have been significantly impacted.

Airframe Integrity and "Wrinkling"

As of the morning of January 7, 2026, the FAA and LATAM technical teams have begun a deep-tissue inspection of the Boeing 767. The investigation is not merely focused on the tyres, but on the potential for structural wrinkling, a phenomenon where the sheer force of a hard landing causes the aircraft’s skin or internal stringers to deform.

Initial reports from the flight deck suggest the crew may have been managing a "disagreement in landing gear indications" prior to the touchdown, specifically regarding the right-hand gear assembly. Investigators will now scrutinise the Digital Flight Data Recorder (DFDR) to determine if a mechanical malfunction in the anti-skid system or an aerodynamic "hard landing" served as the primary catalyst for the eight-fold failure.

The runway remained closed for several hours, causing a ripple effect of delays across the Atlanta hub, a reminder of how quickly the world's most sophisticated logistics network can be humbled by a few inches of failed rubber.