A major airport in the Philippines was forced to close after a plane crashed during landing in bad weather.
More than 160 people were on board a Korean Air flight from Incheon, South Korea, when the plane overran the runway while trying to land for the third time due to heavy rain.
Fortunately, all passengers and crew managed to escape unharmed with the help of the plane’s emergency slides.
“All passengers are safe and under the supervision of ground staff,” the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines said.
The plane’s front bottom was sheared off, while its nose was badly damaged and a hole was visible near one of its doors following the incident.
As a result, he was stuck at the end of the lone usable runway at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport, which is one of the busiest in the country.
The incident forced the cancellation of dozens of flights to and from the airport, including Philippine Airlines, which initially announced the cancellation of more than 50 domestic flights.
Officials said the remaining fuel would be drained from the plane before efforts to remove it began.
Photo: AP
A public apology was issued and an investigation launched
The incident prompted a public apology from the airline’s president, Wu Ki-hong, who said: “We always prioritize safety in all our operations, and we sincerely regret the stress and inconvenience caused to our passengers.”
Now the fact of the incident is being investigated.
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This is not the first time that a plane has gone off the runway in the Philippines, with a Korean Air Lines Boeing 747 doing the same thing when it took off from Manila International Airport in 1981.
The plane struck a concrete guardrail before coming to rest, the front end sticking out over a busy side road of a key freeway.
As a result of the accident, more than a dozen of about 350 people on board were injured.
https://news.sky.com/story/philippines-airport-closed-after-korean-air-plane-overshoots-runway-12729134
