Airplane crashes into ocean in Micronesia

Saturday, September 29, 2018

The approximate location of the crash, according to Jet Airliner Crash Data Evaluation Centre.

Yesterday morning near the international airport located on Weno island of Chuuk state of the Federated States of Micronesia, Oceania a passenger airplane of model Boeing 737-800 flown by the Air Niugini carrier crashed into sea as its pilot missed the runway. All 47 people on board — by differing reports, 36 passengers and eleven crew or 35 passengers and twelve crew — survived.

The report by the international commercial aviation safety organization Jet Airliner Crash Data Evaluation Centre indicated the crash coincided with a sudden intensification of the weather conditions. timeanddate.com-supplied data from CustomWeather reported rain showers at 9:40 a.m. local time, following cloudy conditions at 8:50 a.m.

The airplane reportedly landed around 9:30 a.m. local time, short of the runway by about 160 m to 200 m (about 525 to 650 feet), according to reports. Locals immediately began to rescue the passengers and crew on fishing boats. Officials arrived after about ten minutes, according to a witness quoted by The Guardian.

In an interview, a passenger alleged the crew started panicking and yelling, The Guardian reported. A first responder, Dr James Yaingeluo, also said the airplane crew were in panic. He said, "There was a little bit [of] chaos at first because everybody was really panicked and tried to get out of the plane [...] other than that we were doing as much as we can. Luckily there are no casualties."

Yaingeluo said nine people were taken to a hospital. Four people remained in hospital, one "seriously injured", according to reports recounted by ABC News on Friday evening.

Flight 73 was coming from Pohnpei in the Federated States of Micronesia. Its destination was Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea, with a stop at the Chuuk state.

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Sources

"Past Weather in Weno, Truk, Micronesia — Yesterday or Further Back" — timeanddate.com, September 29, 2018
"2018-09-28 Air Niugini Boeing 737-800 landed in lagoon at Chuuk" — JACDEC, September 28, 2018
"All passengers and crew survive Air Niugini Boeing 737 crash in sea off Micronesian island" — CNN, September 28, 2018
Helen Davidson. "Air Niugini plane overshoots runway in Micronesia and sinks in sea lagoon" — The Guardian, September 28, 2018
Sarah Swain. "Micronesia: Air Niugini plane crash" — 9News, September 28, 2018
Pacific Beat. "Air Niugini plane lands short in lagoon by airport in Micronesia" — ABC News (Australia), September 28, 2018
Air Niugini. "Air Niugini - Press statement" — Facebook, September 28, 2018

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