By Francine Ciasico
A plane from China's Xiamen Airlines landed on its belly on Thursday night at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).
(ALI VICOY / MANILA BULLETIN)
The incident happened at 11:55 p.m., when Xiamen Air flight MF8667 "went off the runway during heavy downpour," the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) said in a joint statement released Friday morning.
"All 157 passengers and flight crew are safe. Investigators from the CAAP Aircraft Accident Investigating Bureau is already on site to determine the cause of the accident," they added.
The passengers said that they smelled something burning inside the plane before it landed.
"Something happen really, with a smell, full of burning smell. Yes, inside," one passenger said in a report.
"Some like this... wings, bad," another passenger said.
The organizations assured that the passengers used the emergency parachutes from the plane during the time of the accident.
Employees from NAIA Terminal 1, alongside the fire and rescue, medical, operations, safety and airport police, assisted the passengers and gave them blankets and food.
"MIAA general manager Ed Monreal and CAAP director general Jim Sydiongco are personally coordinating with the airline officials while supervising recovery and clearing operations on site," MIAA and CAAP stated.
"As of press time, passengers are being transported to a nearby hotel until operations of Xiamen Air resumes," they added.
The international runway was opened 12:00 noon Saturday, MIAA announced.
Read more: (ADVISORY) Cancelled flights due to runway closure (August 17, 2018)