B737-800
Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Troubleshooting; Situational Awareness
Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy
Aircraft Aircraft Damaged; General Declared Emergency
Human Factors; Aircraft
On departure there was an excessive amount of vibration from 110 KTS through cleanup. As we were climbing through 16;000 FT; Departure advised us that there was a significant amount of tire debris on our departure runway and suspected it was from us. All system indications were normal. I decided to continue to [destination]. We declared an emergency with Approach. Emergency equipment was requested. The QRH 'Landing on a Flat Tire' procedure was reviewed. Maintenance was consulted while airborne. Their advice was that it is acceptable to taxi the aircraft with a single damaged tire. At 5;000 FT on approach we began to have hydraulic system 'A' low pressure alerts. The Hydraulic Pump Low pressure QRH checklist was performed. Hydraulic system 'A' failed at 500 FT on approach. Landing was normal. The Loss of System 'A' QRH checklist was completed on the ground.As we slowly taxied; ARFF advised us that the right main inboard tire was damaged and flat. I elected to taxi to the gate. After parking; hydraulic system 'B' was low. Post flight inspection revealed damage to the inboard underside of the right wing; a tire scuff mark on the fuselage and damage to the right horizontal stabilizer. The QRH 'Loss of System A' procedure is not clear. I had read the 'After Landing' note in 'Deferred Items' as pertaining to a manual gear extension only. Since we did not manually extend the gear; I did not think that this note applied to us.
[Narrative 2 had no additional information.]
B737-800 flight crew reported they were advised by ATC that a main gear tire failed on takeoff. They continued to destination and; during the approach; the 'A' hydraulic system failed.