Tragedy in Hong Kong: Cargo Aircraft Plunges into Sea After Runway Skid, Killing Two

Early on Monday, a cargo jet at Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) slid off the runway and into the sea, killing two airport employees in a car it hit and drove into the ocean.

According to officials, the Boeing plane, which was flown by Turkish cargo airline ACT Airlines, broke in two as it landed after deviating from its intended path upon arrival from Dubai at approximately 3:50 a.m. local time.

Regretfully, there was a security patrol car at the airport at that moment. The patrol car was driven into the sea after the plane struck it, according to Steven Yiu, Executive Director of Airport Operations at HKIA. The two inhabitants perished.

Video shows that the tail section of the aircraft snapped off and was left partially underwater. Significant damage was also done to the front part of the aircraft, which was located beneath the cockpit.

The plane’s four crew members received medical attention at nearby hospitals.

Wesley Yung, the technical chief of Hong Kong’s Civil Aviation Department, reported that the aircraft showed no indications of distress on approach. “There was no appeal for help from the pilots,” he stated.

The major emergency response effort that began Monday morning includes over 200 personnel, fire trucks, and boats.
Until the plane is taken out of the ocean, the airport has halted operations on its north runway. According to Yiu, the airport’s operations director, there would not be any problems to the more than 1,000 planes that arrive and depart Hong Kong each day because two other runways are still in use.

The aircraft was wet-leased from ACT Airlines, which also operated the flight, according to an Emirates representative, despite the flight having an Emirates flight number. Major airlines can use ACT Airlines’ additional cargo capacity.

Without going into detail about the crew’s flying experience, the Emirates spokeswoman stated, “Crew are confirmed to be safe and there was no cargo on board.”

At Hong Kong International Airport, which is situated on an island around 20 miles west of the Central district of the Asian financial center, deadly aircraft accidents are uncommon despite being one of the busiest airports in the world.

Only a year after the airport’s formal opening, a China Airlines flight crashed upside down during a storm in 1999, killing at least two individuals and injuring over 200 others. Pilots regarded the city’s original Kai Tak Airport, which was situated in the crowded Kowloon City neighborhood at the time, as one of the hardest airports in the world to land at before the current location was moved.