Assam: Jet Connect plane veers off taxiway at Jorhat airport

Jorhat (Assam), Sep 12: Around Ninety five passengers and crew of a Jorhat-Guwahati-Kolkata flight had a miraculous escape when the Jet Connect plane skidded off the runway at Rowriah airport.

"All the passengers and crew of the Jet Connect flight number 7048 are safe and were brought down from the aircraft unhurt," said Pravakar Mishra, station director of Airport Authority of India (AAI) based at Rowriah Airport.

The Jet Connect flight after landing at the airport at 1.45 pm was taking the first right turn on the runway to the parking bay when it skidded off it, after one of its rear wheels got stuck to the ground, he said.

As the wheel got stuck to the ground, the front part of the plane tipped downward. There was panic among those on-board, but the situation was saved as the engine had been switched off and the aircraft was running at limited speed. It was about 1,500 metres away from the airport lounge, the airport authority said.

The stuck aircraft was later pulled out from the ground with the help of an Indian Air Force crane and other machinery. The flight was cancelled for technical investigation and the passengers were accommodated in local hotels, the airport authority officials added.

PTI