HONG KONG, China – Two people were killed early Monday when a cargo plane collided with a ground vehicle while landing at Hong Kong Airport. The plane skidded off the runway and partially plunged into the sea, local police said.
Authorities reported that the two men who died were on board the ground vehicle, aged 30 and 41. The accident temporarily closed the airport’s northern runway.
Images released after the crash show a Boeing 747 belonging to Turkish airline Air Act partially submerged in the sea near the airport’s seawall, with the nose of the plane separated from the tail and the escape chute deployed.
Hong Kong Airport clarified in a statement that the four crew members on board the plane were rescued safely. The aircraft was a chartered cargo flight from Emirates Airlines, which confirmed the crew’s safety and that there was no cargo on board at the time of the incident.
Turkish carrier Air Act is known for providing additional cargo capacity to major airlines. It operated this flight, EK9788.
