- Hours After Jeju Air Flight Disaster
By Kolawole Ojebisi
A PAL Airlines aircraft, operating as Air Canada flight AC2259, executed an emergency landing at Halifax Airport, Canada, following a landing gear malfunction.
The CBC News Sunday reported that the incident occurred around 9:30PM AT.
According to the report, during the landing, the plane skidded along the pavement, triggering panic among passengers.
Nikki Valentine, a passenger onboard, recounted the harrowing experience, describing how the aircraft tilted approximately 20 degrees to the left, accompanied by a loud crash-like noise.
“The plane started to sit at about a 20-degree angle to the left and, as that happened, we heard a pretty loud—what almost sounded like a crash sound—as the wing of the plane started to skid along the pavement, along with what I presume was the engine,” Valentine told CBC News.
Viral footage from the incident captured the aircraft’s wings scraping the runway, causing a fire during the landing. Fortunately, no casualties were reported among passengers or crew.
This near-death accident triggered by the emergency landing at Halifax Airport happened hours after a deadly incident in South Korea this morning.
Recall that a Jeju Air flight 7C2216 from Bangkok to Muan International Airport carrying 181 passengers, experienced a landing gear failure that resulted in a runway crash.
According to reports, the crash happened after the plane veered off the runway and burst into flames, resulting in 120 fatalities.
This near-fatal development has increased the series of recent aviation accidents.
Recall that an Embraer 190 aircraft operated by Azerbaijan Airlines crashed in Aktau, Kazakhstan, claiming 38 lives while 29 survived on Christmas day.The landing resulted in part of the aircraft catching fire.
A statement from the airport, cited by CBC News on the Canada flight accident, confirmed the incident and stated that all passengers were evacuated and examined by paramedics.
