Twenty one people lost their lives when a Boeing 747 of the Garuda Airlines burst into flames the time it was landing on the runway of Adi Sucipto airport, Yogyakarta in Indonesia. Many passengers managed to…
Twenty one people lost their lives when a Boeing 747 of the Garuda Airlines burst into flames the time it was landing on the runway of Adi Sucipto airport, Yogyakarta in Indonesia. Many passengers managed to escape from the emergency exits of the plane and saved, Associated Press reported.
There were 133 passengers and seven crew on board, as the airline stated. Flight GA200 departed Jakarta at 0600 hours local time and was scheduled to arrive in Yogyakarta at 0655 local time.
Initially, it was announced that 49 people lost their lives but the airline stated that the people killed are 21.
Boeing 737 400 series aircraft, registration PK-GZC, was piloted by Capt. M. Marwoto Komar who has worked with Garuda Indonesia since 1985.
As Garuda claims on its statement, the flight caught fire when it reached the end of runway 9 at Adi Sucipto airport. At the time of the statement, the fire had been extinguished.
At that point 119 passengers and crew had been successfully evacuated. They were taken to two hospitals – Panti Ratih and Panti Rini. The evacuation process was conducted by Garuda technical staff and assisted by other organizations.
Inside the plane there were also ten Australian diplomats whose fate is still unknown as Australian Prime Minister John Howard said.
Garuda on the other hand expressed its sorrow and concern to the families and the loved ones of casualties from the crash. The airline has set up an emergency line to assist them.
In addition to assuming the medical costs of all passengers, the Indonesian national carrier has set up emergency numbers for victims’ families.
