Turkish Airlines plane catches fire during landing at Kathmandu airport, flight operations affected for hours

Kathmandu: There was chaos at Tribhuvan International Airport in Nepal’s capital Kathmandu on Monday morning when Turkish Airlines flight TK726 coming from Istanbul suddenly caught fire during landing. The flames rising from the wheels of the plane stopped the passengers and officials present at the airport from breathing for a few minutes. However, it is a matter of relief that the fire department quickly brought the fire under control and all the passengers were taken out safely.

According to the information, Turkish Airlines flight TK726 had reached Kathmandu from Istanbul. As soon as the plane landed on the runway at around 6.45 am on Monday morning, its wheels suddenly caught fire. Seeing smoke and flames coming out of the plane, an emergency alert was immediately issued at the airport. Nepal Civil Aviation Authority officials immediately sent rescue team and fire brigade personnel to the spot. The fire was controlled within some time, due to which a major accident was averted.

Passengers were evacuated by opening emergency doors

There were a total of 277 passengers on board the plane, including four children. Apart from this, 11 crew members were also present. Immediately after the accident, the emergency gates of the plane were opened and all the passengers were quickly evacuated. Some passengers suffered minor injuries during the rescue operation, but no serious injuries were reported.

Officials said that some cargo items and dead bodies were also being carried in the plane, which were later taken out safely. Information Officer of Nepal Civil Aviation Authority Gyanendra Bhul said that all the passengers are safe and the situation is completely under control.

Airport security officer gave information

Airport Security Department SP Rajkumar Silawal said that the Turkish Airlines plane was coming to Kathmandu from Istanbul. The tire of the plane caught fire during landing, but the fire brigade took immediate action and extinguished the fire. He said that the first priority was to evacuate the passengers safely and it was successful. According to officials, some officials associated with the United Nations were also traveling in the plane.

Many flights affected due to runway closure

After the incident, the plane could not be immediately removed from the runway, due to which the operations of the airport were affected. Due to closure of runways for big planes, many international flights had to be put on hold in the sky. Air India flight AI 215, reaching Kathmandu from Delhi, was delayed in getting landing permission.

Air Arabia flight G9 536 coming from Sharjah also kept circling in the air for a long time. Apart from this, flights coming from Dubai, Bhutan, Kuala Lumpur and Guangzhou also had to wait. Air traffic control kept giving instructions to the planes continuously so that no other emergency situation arises.