Jet lands safely despite blown tire

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 3 (UPI) -- A tire that blew on takeoff forced an American Airlines jet to return to Los Angeles International Airport after circling the city for nearly an hour.

The plane with 135 people on board Tuesday was headed to Toronto when the crew contacted controllers to report they needed to make an emergency landing because the left inboard main gear tire had blown, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Pilots told fire officials they planned to circle the airport for 45 minutes to an hour before attempting an emergency landing, possibly to burn off fuel.

"That would diminish the possibility of having some sort of fire when it lands," airport spokesman Albert Rodriguez told the Times.

Firefighters and airport emergency crews waited as Flight 1586 touched down without incident.