Turkey Plane Crash: Boeing 737 Skidded Off The Runway And Broke Apart Killing Three

A Boeing 737 own by Pegasus Airlines, a Turkish low-cost airline, flying into Istanbul's Sabiha Gokcen International Airport skidded off the runway as it was landing on Wednesday, Feb. 5. The aircraft broke into three parts before it burst into flames.

The plane was flying from Turkey's İzmir and landed at Sabiha Gökçen Airport in Istanbul in the afternoon but the bad weather may have caused it to veer off and crash. According to The Daily Mail, three passengers were killed while injuring 179 others.

The incident has been caught on camera and it showed the moment when the burning aircraft skidded before it dived into a grassy ditch and broke apart into three pieces. Firefighters and medics immediately rushed to the scene and rescued those onboard.

The Boeing 737 was burning so the passengers were panicking and they scrambled to escape by getting out through the cracks of the plane. It was reported that the aircraft was severely pounded on by the heavy rain and strong winds so it was not able to hold on to the runway and slid for at least 50 to 60 meters before plunging into a ditch at the end of the landing strip.

“According to the information we have, there was a rough landing,” the publication quoted Mehmet Cahit Turan, Turkey’s Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure, as saying. “The accident occurred after (the plane) could not decelerate and rammed into a field from the end of the runway.”

One of the survivors, 24-year-old Dogus Bilgic recounted his experience and told the media how he got out of the wrecked aircraft. He was also one of the first passengers to escape.

“We traveled on the runway for some 20 or 30 seconds, then all of a sudden we flew off the runway,” Los Angeles Times quoted him as saying. “It happened in seconds. I was seated in 25C. I believe the plane broke apart at row 26.”

It was reported that this is the second accident early this year that involves Pegasus Airline. On Jan. 7, one of the said budget airlines’ planes carrying 164 people had skidded off the runway as well. It was another scary incident but fortunately, no one was hurt.

At this point, officials are now questioning why this airline experienced the same incident in just four weeks. Prosecutors are said to be opening an investigation for these accidents.