NTSB report reveals what led to fiery belly landing at Fort Myers airport

FORT MYERS, Fla. (WINK)—New details reveal how a plane ended up landing on its belly at Page Field earlier this month, scraping down the runway in a shower of sparks.

The flight was coming in from Fort Lauderdale. Video from the Port Authority shows a thick trail of smoke behind the plane and sparks shooting across the runway as the jet scraped to a stop.

The National Transportation Safety Board report shows the crew had been dealing with the same warning messages on a previous flight. Those warnings popped up again on this flight from Fort Lauderdale to Fort Myers.

Investigators say the alerts became so annoying that the captain had the first officer pull a circuit breaker to stop the warning sound. Then, as the jet approached Fort Myers, investigators say the captain started the before-landing checklist.

He was interrupted by air traffic control and the continuing warnings. According to the report, he never went back and finished it.

One of the most important items on that checklist is making sure the landing gear is down. Seconds later, the jet touched down with the landing gear still retracted.

The aircraft slid down the runway on its belly, throwing sparks as it went. Both pilots walked away without a scratch.

The NTSB has not determined a cause, and the investigation is continuing.