Dozens killed in Thai plane crash

At least 66 people have died after a budget airliner crashed as it tried to land in heavy rain at the Thai holiday resort of Phuket, officials say.

It was carrying 123 passengers - many of them foreigners - and five crew.

The exact number of casualties is not clear, but Phuket's deputy governor said more than 40 survivors were being treated in hospital.

Flight OG 269, operated by airline One-Two-Go, was landing after flying from the capital, Bangkok.

Phuket Deputy Governor Worapot Ratthaseema said 66 people had been confirmed dead after the plane skidded off the runway in strong winds and driving rain on Sunday.

He added that 42 had been taken to hospital and the remainder were missing.


Hospital officials told AFP news agency that those injured included nationals from Australia, Austria, Britain, Iran, Ireland, Italy and the Netherlands.

More than half the passengers were reported to be foreigners.

There was an explosion and a fire as the McDonnell Douglas MD-82 landed.

Survivor Parinwit Chusaeng told Thai TV: "I saw passengers engulfed in fire as I stepped over them on the way out of the plane.

"I was afraid that the airplane was going to explode, so I ran away."

Both pilots are said to be among the survivors.

Rescue operations are under way at the airport and doctors are being flown to Phuket to treat the injured.

The flight, en route from Bangkok, was approaching Phuket airport when the pilot asked to abort the landing, aviation official Chiasak Angkauwan told Thai television.

"The control tower allowed it but the aircraft fell to the runway and the body broke," he said.

This is Thailand's deadliest aviation accident since December 1998, when 101 people were killed after a Thai Airways crashed on landing near another southern resort.

oh no

Carrie, Karen, and I will be taking a plane from Bangkok to Pukhet in the next few months



This is horrible.

Also there are conflicting reports about whether the plane actually landed and then skidded off the runway or just crash landed.

What is it about this latter part of the year and things happening in Thailand? The tsunami, the coup, Bangkok NYE bombings, now this.

fhqwhgads said:

I heard an interview with a Swedish survivor and he said that he knew something was wrong when the pilot kept making speed corrections during the approach. When they got in over the runway they were much too high above the ground. Then, at the last minute, the pilot retracted the landing gear, presumably to go up and around again to come in properly, but instead of rising they just kept sinking until they hit the ground. At least that's what this guy said.



Yeah, you guys have definitely endured more than your fair share of tragedies.

Yes, it certainly now sounds like they didn't land properly and then skid off the runway as some witnesses had said but that they crash landed. A Thai passenger spoke about how it felt like the pilot was trying to pull back up at the last minute. What's up with the banging noises on the approach though?

I can't believe it when I hear of people angry about delays and cancelations to their flights. I mean, have a heart.

fhqwhgads said:

No idea. The Swedish guy didn't mention any of that, he just said that the pilot was rushing the engine and seemed to have trouble finding the right approach speed. Lucky thing that the guy and his friend were sitting right next to the emergency exit door. I always try to pick those seats anyway because they have better leg room, but it's always been in the back of my mind that it could be useful for other reasons too...



Empathy and decency are in short supply all over the world.

Anyway, I'm glad that nobody from your family was in the crash.

Mildred Anne Furlong, 23, of Prince George, B.C.,... said she couldn't believe she walked away from the wreckage.
"Really looking at the footage on the news, I can't believe anybody did. It looks so bad," she told The Canadian Press in an interview from Phuket International Hospital. "There was only a few of us that got out on our own. It's amazing that I was one of them.''

oh nick this is terrible...
it just sounds so strange. noises and landing gear and aborted landing.
hopefully the surviving pilots can help explain what happened.

one canadian survived...

I only just heard about this on the way home this afternoon
..they were saying that a Australian guy survived and he was also a surviver of the boxing day tsuanami ....not sure how true those facts are..but if its true someone is watching over him

[Edited 9/17/07 0:47am]

The Australian press is reporting that Robert Borland, on fire and covered in aviation fuel, was dragged from the blazing wreckage of the Phuket plane crash by a Thai passenger he calls the "saint in yellow".

"The Thai man with a yellow T-shirt dragged me out on to the wing. He was like a saint to me," he said.

The 48-year-old, who grew up in Perth, has been living and working in Thailand for 12 years and was on the island on Boxing Day 2004 when the tsunami hit. On Sunday, he was returning to Phuket after travelling to Bangkok and Singapore on business.

"It's impossible to describe how lucky I was," he said.

The story described the crash, and then had this description of Mr Borland's escape:

Although he was suffering a broken and dislocated left arm, back injuries and burns to his legs, Mr Borland, who was sitting in seat 24F, managed to push open the emergency exit window next to him.

"I pulled the hatch but then realised there was an inferno outside, so I pushed it back and fell to the floor," he said.

"I crawled over to the other side where there was another exit and at that time I realised my trousers were on fire. I crawled to the exit door but couldn't raise myself to get out. Then the Thai man with a yellow T-shirt dragged me out on to the wing. I slid down to the ground and saw others coming out of the exit.