Despite three dead and around 179 injured, Pegasus Airlines is mum about how its flight PC 2193 broke into three pieces after landing.
Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said that the airline flew into Istanbul's Sabiha Gokcen airport when it skidded off the end of the wet runway and broke into three pieces after landing on Wednesday.
Koca told reporters that three people had died in hospital after the accident, adding that 179 out of the 183 passengers and crew on the plane were wounded.
%%%twitter https://twitter.com/hashtag/Pegasus?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PegasusAirlines plane from Turkey has skidded off the runway and broken into three pieces on landing at an airport in Istanbul,injuring 52 people.
The jet was carrying 171 passengers and six crew members from Izmir province in the west when it crashed at Sabiha Gokcen airport pic.twitter.com/Bq0wrtxTyD
— MDWLive! News (@MDWLiveFeed)
The airline via a statement said it was deeply saddened by the incident, but did not reveal what caused it.
“Pegasus Airlines shares in the profound sorrow of all the people affected by this tragic accident. Above all, we would like to express our profound sympathy and heartfelt condolences to those families and friends who have lost loved ones and extend our thoughts to them at this difficult time. Our injured passengers continue to be treated in hospital and we wish them all a swift recovery.
“We are deploying every resource to support those affected by this accident. Pegasus Airlines’ priority is to support the relatives and friends who have lost loved ones, and we will be doing everything we can to help them in the aftermath of this tragic event, as well as doing our utmost to provide our full support in meeting the needs in hospital of our injured passengers,” the statement revealed.
Istanbul Governor Ali Yerlikaya said the Boeing 737-86J split into three pieces after a drop of around 30 to 40 metres at the end of the wet runway. Footage showed the plane landing and continuing at a high speed off the runway.