Boeing Jet Sinks After Overshooting Micronesia Runway, SMH Says
The plane landed about 150 meters from the shore and all 36 passengers and 11 crew on board were rescued.
(Bloomberg) -- A Boeing Co. jet operated by Air Niugini landed on water after failing to reach the runway on one of the Pacific islands of Micronesia. All on board were evacuated safely.
The 737-800 single-aisle jet, capable of carrying more than 150 passengers, landed short of the runway while reaching Chuuk Island in the Federated States of Micronesia, the carrier said in a statement Friday posted on Facebook. Air Niugini, the national carrier of neighboring Papua New Guinea, didn’t say how many passengers and crew were on board.
Boeing said in a Twitter post that it “is prepared to provide technical assistance under the direction of investigating government authorities.”
The plane landed about 150 meters from the shore and all 36 passengers and 11 crew on board were rescued, the Sydney Morning Herald reported earlier. The newspaper published pictures from social media that showed the aircraft afloat on calm waters, surrounded by dozens of small boats and at least two life rafts.
--With assistance from Dong Lyu.
To contact the reporter on this story: Angus Whitley in Sydney at awhitley1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Anand Krishnamoorthy at anandk@bloomberg.net, Sam Nagarajan
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