Berliner Tageblatt - Cargo plane breaks in two during emergency landing in Costa Rica

NYSE - LSE
RBGPF -1.5% 61.28 $
SCS 0.17% 11.6 $
NGG 1.09% 60.71 $
CMSC -0.02% 23.485 $
RELX 0.26% 49.39 $
AZN 0.58% 68.6 $
RIO 0.71% 61.56 $
CMSD -0.38% 23.87 $
BTI 1.3% 37.05 $
BCC 0.41% 128.45 $
JRI 0.16% 12.55 $
GSK 1.82% 34.05 $
BCE 0.3% 23.22 $
RYCEF 3.71% 7.55 $
VOD 0.24% 8.4 $
BP 1.14% 31.49 $
Cargo plane breaks in two during emergency landing in Costa Rica
Cargo plane breaks in two during emergency landing in Costa Rica / Photo: ©

Cargo plane breaks in two during emergency landing in Costa Rica

A cargo airplane broke up during an emergency landing in Costa Rica on Thursday, in an accident that provoked the temporary closure of the international airport in San Jose.

Text size:

Smoke was billowing from the bright yellow plane of German logistics giant DHL as it ground to a halt, having slid off the runway when it spun and broke up around the rear wheels.

Two crew members aboard were "in a good condition," said the chief of Costa Rica's firefighters, Hector Chaves.

Nonetheless, the Guatemalan pair were sent to hospital as a precaution "for a medical check-up," according to Guido Vasquez, a Red Cross worker.

The pilot was shaken up but both crew were conscious and "remember everything vividly," added Vasquez.

The accident happened just before 10:30 am (1630 GMT) after the Boeing-757 plane, which had taken off from the Juan Santamaria international airport outside San Jose, was forced to return 25 minutes later for an emergency landing due to a mechanical failure.

The crew apparently had alerted local authorities to a hydraulic problem.

The airport was closed until 6:00 pm.

S.Keller--BTB