Sat, 01/17/2009 5:21 PM, The Jakarta Post
MAKASSAR, South Sulawesi: Two tires on a Merpati Nusantara airplane blew out just before takeoff at Sultan Hasanuddin Airport in Makassar on Friday, but all 136 passengers and five crew escaped unhurt, officials say.
Flight MZ 762 was scheduled to fly to Timika, Papua. It was eventually canceled. "The plane suddenly stopped when it was about to take off, and after checking, we found two of the Boeing 737-400's tires had blown out," said Didik Suryanto, spokesman for state-owned airport management company PT Angkasa Pura I.
The incident, which took place at about 11:40 a.m. local time, forced the closure of the airport for an hour and a half. After the plane had been towed to the hangar, the airport was reopened.
Because of the closure, three flights to Makassar were detoured to other cities, while two flights from Makassar were delayed.
This was the second tire blowout to take place at the airport in the last three months.
No comments:
Post a Comment