All 238 people aboard a Turkish Airlines A330 are safe after the aircraft somehow ended up in the grasslands beyond the runway. Conflicting reports state that it either ran off the end of the runway or completely missed the runway on its second attempt at landing in what appears to be poor weather conditions.
Flight TK726 was a regular passenger service from Istanbul-Atatürk International Airport (IST) to Kathmandu, Nepal. The flight was the first international flight to scheduled to arrive that morning. The aircraft circled and positioned for a second approach to runway 02 after abandoning its first attempt. At some point it ran onto soft soil and the nose landing gear collapsed.
Officials refuted earlier reports that dense fog shrouded the high altitude airport saying the visibility was "OK" at the time of the incident, although social media photos show the damaged aircraft shrouded in fog. "The plane had permission to land and while conditions were foggy earlier, visibility was ok," Nepalese aviation official Prasad Chudal told AFP. "We are not sure how this happened."
The accident closed the airport, which is Nepal's only international field. The airport will be closed until at least 4 p.m. local time Thursday. A team of investigators has been dispatched to determine the cause.
Landing at Kathmandu is known to be challenging due to the mountainous terrain and generally poor visibility. Check out this approach get get an idea of what its like.
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