An airliner with 177 people on board broke and caught fire after landing in Istanbul on Wednesday, February 5, leaving one person dead and 157 injured. The fuselage of the aircraft, of the Turkish private company Pegasus, broke in three and caught fire after the plane left the runway at Sabiha Gökçen International Airport, located on the Asian side of Istanbul. , according to the images broadcast by the T24 news site. “At this stage, 157 injured were hospitalized and one of our fellow citizens lost his life”, said Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca.
Sabiha Gökçen’de İzmir-İstanbul seferini yapan yolcu uçağı inişte parçalandı
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The Boeing 737, coming from the city of Izmir (west), left the runway due to bad weather conditions, according to the governor of Istanbul, Ali Yerlikaya. Heavy rain fell on the city. Mr. Yerlikaya explained that the plane had “Slipped over sixty meters” after leaving the track, before “Fall from a height of 30 to 40 meters” an embankment. “The accident could have had more serious consequences”, he said.
The front part of the fuselage, comprising the cockpit and the first rows, separated from the rest of the aircraft. A second crack was visible at the rear third of the aircraft, comprising the last 10 rows and the tail of the aircraft. The fire which started after the accident was brought under control by firefighters and dozens of ambulances were present at the scene of the accident, according to local media.
The two seriously injured pilots
Turkish Transport Minister Mehmet Cahit Turhan said earlier that some passengers were still trapped in the aircraft. “Some passengers left the plane on their own, but others are trapped inside and our rescuers are trying to free them”said the minister on CNN-Türk. Sabiha Gökçen Airport has been closed to flights and all aircraft redirected to Istanbul International Airport, on the European side of the Turkish economic capital.
Located at the intersection of Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa, Istanbul is a major air transportation hub. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan intends to make the city the leading air destination in the world, notably with the help of the Istanbul airport inaugurated in 2018. But the metropolis of more than 15 million inhabitants is regularly swept by strong winds. and driving rain which complicates the task of the pilots. Weather conditions, which can be extreme in winter, regularly force airport authorities to cancel flights.
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