A Thai Airways flight skidded off the runway while landing at Bangkok's international airport. Two Chinese nationals were left in the hospital following the incident.
Thai Airways is investigating why the landing gear of the 18-year-old Airbus A330 jet malfunctioned as it landed at Suvarnabhumi Airport following a three-hour flight from Guangzhou, China on Sunday, the Wall Street Journal reports.
The plane was carrying 288 passengers and 14 crew members when it landed at 11:20 p.m. local time. Passengers had to evacuate by emergency slides. A total of 13 people were injured during the evacuation. Nine of them were Chinese, three were Thai and one was Zimbabwean. The airline says the landing occurred during a period of clear and calm weather, so weather should not be a factor.
Witnesses said sparks were coming from the right landing gear as it landed. Most of the passengers were Chinese citizens and many of them were on the plane as part of a tour package to the resort nation of Bangkok. Thailand is the biggest outbound international travel market in China, pushing ahead of Japan. Chinese tourists to Thailand doubled more than two million in the first half of the year, which is an increase from 1.1 million during the same time last year.
Thai Airways and Airbus and investigating what caused the crash. According to the airline, the A330 aircraft underwent a full maintenance check in April. This is done every five years. The captain of the flight has more than 14 years of experience.
Following the incident, Thai Airways painted the airline name, logo and registration number black. They say this is done according to international practices.
The airline has been trying to improve its safety record. This was the worst incident for the airline since March 2011, when Boeing 737 exploded while the aircraft was being serviced at the gate. One flight attendant died and six others were injured in that accident.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
