MORE PICS – CARGO PLANE CRASH Landed - KUCHING AIRPORT; 5.52am 13 Jan 07; AIRPORT Closed 6 Hours; 30 FLIGHTS & 2000 Passengers Delayed; 4 CREWS Unhurt

Once again Murphy's Law is working - if something like this is going to happen, it will someday. Probably the Captain was bit “sleepy” and misaligned his plane slightly and dumped it on the grass verge causing it to land on its belly. It was lucky escape as it did not caught fire because the grass and soil did not produce enough sparks to ignite the leaked fuel.

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January 13, 2007 13:49 PM

Kuching Airport Resumes Operation After Six-hour Closure

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 13 (Bernama) -- The Kuching International Airport re-opened for flight arrivals and departures at noon after a six-hour closure following the crash-landing of a cargo carrier early Saturday. Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB) general manager (corporate communications) Norliza Kamaruddin confirmed resumption of the airport's operations after the 5.52am mishap.

ABOVE & BELOW: The Boeing B737-200 plane belonging to Gading Sari Aviation Services Sdn Bhd crash-landed on its "belly" and was stuck in the middle of the runway

Departures and arrivals of 16 Malaysia Airlines (MAS) and 14 AirAsia flights were delayed when the airport was temporarily closed after the Boeing B737-200 plane belonging to Gading Sari Aviation Services Sdn Bhd crash-landed and was stuck in the middle of the runway.

ABOVE; The Upper part of the wing, the slats were intact but the engine compartment and engine were smashed. BELOW: The tail rudder and fin on higher ground was not affeected

The aircraft operated as a mail courier for Pos Malaysia Bhd. The airport was closed since 6am to remove the plane from the runway. The plane, with four people on board, crashed on the grass area, veering off about 1,000m between the runway and taxiway, MAHB said in a statement. Meanwhile, Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Douglas Uggah Embas said the two rear tyres of the aircraft came off upon crash-landing.

ABOVE: The right wing was covered with grass turf scrapped up with the engine missing & probably the landing gear also.

The engine compartment and the right wing of the aircraft were damaged due to the impact of the emergency landing. "Fragments of the tyres, splinters of engine parts and the right wing were scattered on the runway, forcing the airport authorities to close the airport for clean-up work and to remove the aircraft from the runway," he told reporters after being briefed on the incident. The plane, flown by an Indonesian pilot, only known as Capt Hartono, took off from the KL International Airport in Sepang at 4am, carrying letters and parcels of Pos Malaysia Bhd and newspapers.

ABOVE & BELOW: Two cranes were called to lift and towed the plane away from the runway which was eventally opened after six hours of closure.

"It was not carrying any dangerous cargo," he said. Following the incident, about 2,000 MAS and AirAsia passengers were stranded at the airport. He said the crash-landing did not damage the runway except for a few broken navigational lights by the runway side. "Inspection reveals the runway is safe for flight arrivals and departures," he said. The DCA is investigating the cause of the incident, he added.

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January 13, 2007 12:57 PM

Cargo Plane Crash Lands, Kuching Airport Closed

ABOVE: The arrival/departure display showed the planes "delayed" and MAS & AIRASIA passengers just have to wait it out.

KUCHING, Jan 13 (Bernama) -- The Kuching International Airport was closed from 6am Saturday after a cargo carrier from Kuala Lumpur crash-landed. Department of Civil Aviation director-general Datuk Kok Soo Chon said no human casualties were reported in the incident but the Boeing 737-200 plane was stuck in the middle of the runway.

ABOVE & BELOW: Passengers waiting for the airport to reopen

He said Malaysia Airports Berhad employees were working to tow away the aircraft from the runway to enable the airport to be re-opened, he told Bernama. It is learnt that the Gading Sari-owned plane, with four people on board, was on a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Kuching, carrying various cargo, including those belonging to Pos Malaysia Bhd and today's newspapers. The plane's nose wheel and fuselage were reportedly damaged due to the impact of the crash-landing. Heavy machinery are being used to remove the aircraft from the runway under the watchful eyes of airport security personnel.