Lion Plane skids in Pekanbaru

Lion Plane skids in Pekanbaru

M. Syaraf, The Jakarta Post, Pekanbaru

At least seven people were injured when a plane carrying 96
passengers crash-landed shortly after takeoff on Monday at the
Sultan Syarif Qasim II Airport in Pekanbaru, Riau, airport
officials said.

No fatalities were reported after the accident that took place
at 10:15 p.m. However, one of the wounded passengers, a
Singaporean, suffered a broken leg.

Airport officials said the Boeing 737 plane belonging to Lion
Air, a small airline company, suddenly came to a halt just
several minutes after hitting the runway.

They also said the aircraft was about to take off when a light
on the side of the runway turned red, prompting the pilot to
abort the takeoff.

"When the plane was taking off, it immediately landed outside
the runway," a passenger said. "We then screamed in panic. But
when the plane touched down, we rushed to get out through the
emergency doors."

Other passengers said smoke was blowing from the fuselage when
the plane stopped. The plane's right wing and right wheel were
also damaged, they added.

Rescue workers and firefighters rushed to the scene and
extinguished the small blaze.

Airport officials, police and medical personnel evacuated the
passengers and crew from the airport and took the injured to a
nearby hospital.

Airport authorities prohibited journalists from covering the
event at the scene of the accident.

It was not immediately clear what caused the crash. The plane,
on its way from Jakarta to Batam, made a stopover in Pekanbaru,
where it took off at 10:10 a.m.

Some of the passengers had been moved to Lion's Boeing 737
from a Merpati plane that was also bound for Batam.

Lion officials said all the passengers were safe, saying the
crash only caused minor injuries.