U.S. Investigators searched sunday for cause of serious accident. The boeing 777-200 had hit the runway of the international airport of the west coast metropolis without warning after a good ten-hour flight from seoul. It broke apart and burned out roughly.
The two dead were found outside the plane on the tarmac, a fire department official said. According to asiana airlines president yoon young-doo and U.S. Media, they are two 16-year-old chinese schoolgirls who were traveling with a group to spend the summer in the U.S.
Five injured still in critical condition sunday, san francisco chronicle newspaper reports. According to a hospital spokeswoman, many victims suffered burns and broken bones, and some also suffered internal injuries.
The pictures from the accident site were frightening. The plane lay on the tarmac with its cabin ceiling torn open and burned, the tail section broken off. Parts of trummer lay scattered across runway 28L.
On the left side, two emergency slides could be seen, over which most passengers were able to escape from the burning wreckage even before the fire department arrived. "We’ve been very lucky to have so many survivors," said the city’s mayor, ed lee. "This could have been much worse."We are very grateful that there were not more fatalities," said the chairwoman of the U.S. National transportation safety board (NTSB), debbi hersman.
182 people arrived in hospital, airport spokesman says. A total of 291 passengers and 16 crew members were on board. The flugguests were mainly chinese, sudkoreans and u.S. Burgers. Some came from france, india and canada, the airline said. 30 travelers were children. There are no indications of germans among the victims, said a spokesman for the foreign office in berlin.
The head of the airline said that, as far as he knew, there had been no engine failure. The plane made only this one attempt to land. The federal bureau of investigation ruled out a terrorist attack. NTSB rejects speculation by witnesses that it may have been pilot error. "It is much too early for us to take a position," hersman said. Investigators found the flight recorders of the plane, which had been in service with the airline since 2006. They were evaluated in the U.S. Capital of washington.
The international airport is located on the shores of san francisco bay. Fire department officials said some passengers were out of the water when rescuers arrived. "But the plane was definitely not in the water," she added. Because there was a fire on board, passengers may have panicked and fled into the wet.
The FAA officially classified the incident as a crash landing. Eyewitnesses reported on television that there was a bang or explosion on the landing gear when the plane touched down. The wheels may have hit an obstacle, causing the pilot to lose control of the plane. Weiber smoke was seen, then the plane spun several times. Airport firefighters responded with foam and water.
A witness who had been sitting in row 30, according to the san francisco chronicle newspaper, reported that the plane flew too low before reaching the runway. Experts said on television that the landing gear may have hit a quay wall at the edge of the airport.
Air traffic at the international airport had to be suspended for hours. Incoming flights were diverted to other destinations on the west coast. After the national holiday last thursday and because of the school vacations, the weekend is one of the busiest days for travel.
U.S. President barack obama thanked first responders for their quick action, according to a news release. UN secretary general ban ki moon expressed his condolences to the bereaved families. His thoughts are with the families of the victims, the korean said in new york.
Asiana is the second largest airline in south korea after korean air and a member of the star alliance, which includes lufthansa. It flies to many destinations, especially on the west coast of the USA. Asiana operates twelve boeing 777-200s, each of which can carry about 300 passengers. Both the aircraft type and the airline are considered very safe by aviation experts.