Six people were injured today when a Colombian plane with 54 people on board skidded off the runway on landing and slammed nose-first into the sea in the Caribbean coastal city of Santa Marta, local officials said.
The Aerorepublica airliner broke through the fence at the end of the runway at Simon Bolivar airport after landing in driving rain, airport officials said.
The passengers were evacuated via emergency chutes at the front of the plane, they said.
Six people were slightly injured in the accident, they said.
One of the passengers, Antonio Jose Valencia told RCN radio that the accident happened on the second landing attempt, when the plane touched down mid-way down the runway.
"The runway was wet, and with all that wind the plane could not stop and went straight before turning on its side with its nose ending up in the water," he added.
The plane with a crew of five took off earlier from Cali, 500 kilometres southeast of Bogota. Santa Marta is located 950 kilometres north of Bogota.
Taken from Air Disaster.
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