Halifax Airport in Canada was temporarily closed on Saturday night after a plane from the Canadian city of St. John’s in Newfoundland made a hard landing, veering off the runway and catching fire in part.
According to local media, the aircraft, operated by PAL Airlines under the Air Canada banner as Flight AC2259, had 73 passengers on board. In a statement, the airport said that all passengers and crew were evacuated and taken off the airport premises.
Air Canada’s representative, Peter Fitzpatrick, told La Presse that the plane likely had problems with its landing gear, and that only minor injuries were reported after passengers and crew were examined by doctors.
Passengers also believe a malfunction in the landing gear caused the incident. As reported by CBC News, the plane skidded off the runway, resulting in a partial fire. One of the passengers, Nikki Valentine, told the news channel that one of the landing gear’s wheels failed during the landing:
“We heard a pretty loud noise, almost like a crash, as the plane’s wing started to slip onto the runway, along with what I think was the engine.”
Valentine said that after the incident, the plane shook heavily, and a fire broke out on the left side. Videos of the incident have already been published.
The incident occurred just hours after a fatal crash in South Korea, where a passenger plane with 181 people on board crashed during landing, resulting in the deaths of 179 people at Muan International Airport.