All passengers and crew travelling on a Turkish Airlines Airbus A330 have had a lucky escape after their plane slid off the runway as it tried to land in dense fog in Kathmandu, Nepal.
Flight THY726 from Istanbul, carrying 224 passengers and 11 crew members, was coming in to land on Wednesday when it overshot the runway and before skidding to a halt near the airport’s fire station, the Hindustan Times reported.
Video footage of the crash shows terrified passengers evacuating the aircraft using the plane’s emergency inflatable slides and running from the scene.
It is reported that no one on the aircraft sustained serious injuries only a few minor abrasions and bruises.
The Hindustan Times reports that Nepalese airport spokesman, Purna Prasad Chudal said the pilot overshot the runway during an initial attempt to land, before taking a second stab that sent the plane skidding off the tarmac.
One passenger, Dikesh Malhotra told local reporters that once the plane hit the ground the frightened passengers clutched at their seats and nervously waited for the plane to come to a stop.
“We could feel the tyres skid… I could see an air hostess from my seat, she had tears in her eyes,” Malhotra, 28, told AFP.
When the plane did finally come to a standstill, Malhotra said smoke filled the cabin and it was hard to breathe.
“Everyone got up and started shouting to open the door… finally they announced evacuation… we were so relieved,” he said.
Chudal said officials would launch an investigation into the crash and question the pilot.
Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu is the only international airport in Nepal, so the calamity has caused all flights in and out of the country to be cancelled, leaving hundreds of passengers stranded.
According to the BBC “Nepal doesn’t have the equipment required to move the plane safely and is trying to borrow it from neighbouring India. The authorities hope to resume flights on Thursday.”
One passenger took this snap of other sliding down the emergency slides once he evacuated the aircraft. PHOTO: Instagram/Peterlubeck.
Another still from a passenger’s video. PHOTO: Instagram/ peterlubeck.
Nepalese rescue workers check the area around a Turkish Airlines plane after it slid off the tarmac at Kathmandu international airport.
A picture taken with a smartphone from one of the passengers of the Turkish Airlines airbus, shows passengers evacuating the plane after it skidded off the runway while landing.
Four passengers were injured when a Turkish Airlines Airbus A330 made a rough landing but local reports indicate no was was killed or seriously injured.
One of the tyres of the plane reportedly burst during landing and it slipped off the runway on to the grass.
Stranded passengers wait for flights to resume at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal.
Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu is the only international airport in Nepal, so the calamity has caused all flights in and out of the country to be cancelled, leaving hundreds of passengers stranded.
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