At least 16 dead including pilot after plane crash lands and splits in two on runway
An Air India plane with nearly 200 people on board has crashed into a valley after overshooting the runway at its destination.
The crash has left 16 dead, 123 injured and 15 seriously injured, according to the Times of India which quotes police sources. The news website says both pilots have died in the crash, naming one as Captain Dipak Vasant Sathe.
Images circulating on social media show an aircraft ruptured into two parts laying in a valley near Calicut airport, in the Indian state of Kerala.
The plane was travelling from Dubai when it tried to land at full speed amid very heavy rainfall at around 7:38 pm local time on Friday.
Emergency services have rushed to the scene, with paramedics ferrying the injured to local hospitals.
The were thought to be 191 passengers on board the plane, including 10 children and six crew members.
Several politicians, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, have expressed condolences to the victims of the crash.
India’s minister for Civil Aviation, Hardeep Singh Puri, said the plane went down a 35 ft a slope before breaking up into two pieces.
He said relief teams were being dispatched from from Delhi and Mumbai and a full inquiry would be launched into the crash.
There have been flooding and landslides as India’s monsoon season reaches its peak.
Mr Alphons, the former Minister of State for Tourism, said all passengers were evacuated and that it was lucky the aircraft didn’t catch fire.
In May 2010, 158 people died when an Air India Express flight overshot Mangalore airport runway and crashed.
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