One dead, at least 157 injured after passenger jet veered off runway in Istanbul – new official figures
One person is dead and over 150 people have been hospitalized after the Pegasus Airlines jet overshot the runway in a dramatic landing accident, Turkey’s health ministry said. The packed passenger jet split into three pieces.
The hair-raising accident occurred on Monday, when the plane veered off the airport’s runway after landing. The aircraft – containing 171 passengers and six crew members – was badly damaged, with the cockpit detaching completely from the rest of the structure and overturning.
The plane briefly caught fire on impact, yet the flames were extinguished quickly. While the airframe was badly damaged, officials confirmed that no-one was killed during the crash.
The number of injured people, who have been hospitalized stands at 120, according to the governor of Istanbul Ali Yerlikaya. The number of injured has been revised twice after the crash – initially, the authorities reported 21 injured and then bumped that figure to 52.
Late on Monday, the figures were revised once again. Turkey’s Health Ministry said one person succumbed to his injuries after the accident, while 157 people were injured.
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