A United Airlines plane lost a tyre mid-air on Thursday while taking off from San Francisco.

In the latest incident involving aircraft manufacturer Boeing, the carrier said the B777-200 jet was carrying 249 people on its way to Japan.

According to United Airlines, the aircraft made a safe emergency landing at Los Angeles International Airport, where authorities could be seen inspecting the plane.

Reports say the wheel fell into a car park at San Francisco International Airport and that no one was injured.

However, pictures from the scene showed several cars badly damaged by the impact.