Cargo plane skids off runway into sea at Hong Kong airport; 2 reported dead
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HONG KONG - A cargo plane flying from Dubai skidded off the runway into the sea while landing at Hong Kong International Airport early on Oct 20, the city’s airport operator said, with local media reporting the deaths of two people.
Photos taken after the accident showed a Boeing 747 cargo aircraft with AirACT livery partially submerged in water near the airport’s sea wall with an escape slide deployed and the nose and tail sections separated.
Flights at Hong Kong International Airport will not be affected on Oct 20, the Airport Authority said.
The four crew members on board the plane were rescued, the Hong Kong airport said in a statement.
Two people who were inside a ground vehicle near the runway that was suspected to have been struck by the aircraft have died, the South China Morning Post reported, citing police.
The northern runway at the airport is closed after the incident, Hong Kong International Airport said, adding that the south and central runways would continue to operate.
The accident occurred around 3.50am local time.
Hong Kong’s Civil Aviation Department said in a statement on Oct 20 that the aircraft had “deviated from the north runway after landing and ditched into the sea”.
“Two ground staff were affected and fell into the sea, and their conditions are pending confirmation.”
Emirates said in a statement that flight EK9788 sustained damage on landing in Hong Kong on Oct 20 and was a Boeing 747 cargo aircraft wet-leased from and operated by ACT Airlines.
“Crew are confirmed to be safe and there was no cargo onboard,” Emirates said.
ACT Airlines is a Turkish carrier that provides extra cargo capacity to major airlines. It did not respond immediately to a request for comment outside normal business hours.
Flight tracking service FlightRadar24 said the aircraft involved in the accident was 32 years old and had served as a passenger plane before being converted into a freighter.
Hong Kong’s Civil Aviation Department said it had reported the incident to the city’s Air Accident Investigation Authority and that it would support the investigation.
The accident would mark one of the most serious in the airport’s 27-year history. In 1999, three people died when a China Airlines flight crashed while landing during a typhoon and flipped upside down.
The Oct 20 accident echoes another China Airlines accident at the city’s old Kai Tak Airport when a 747 overran the runway during typhoon conditions. The jet was submerged in water beyond the end of the runway, with around two dozen passengers and crew injured. REUTERS, BLOOMBERG
