At Least 88 Killed as Plane Crashes in Thailand

A low-fare airline carrying many foreign tourists crashed in heavy rain, broke into pieces and burst into flame on Thailand’s resort island of Phuket on Sunday, killing at least 88 of the 130 passengers and crew on board.

More bodies were expected to be retrieved from the smoldering wreckage of the plane, a McDonnell Douglas MD-82 that was Flight OG 269 of One-Two-GO, an airline based in Bangkok, officials said.

The exact cause of the crash was unclear late Sunday, but witnesses said the plane slid off the runway soon after touching down in heavy wind and rain.

“The plane looked like it was going to land,” Nong Khawnoun, a survivor of the crash, told the Thai television station Channel 9. “It felt like the wheels almost touched the ground, but we started going up again. Then we slid and hit the dirt embankment.”

The flight, which left Don Muang airport in Bangkok at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, had two pilots and five other crew members on board, in addition to 123 passengers, 79 of them foreigners and 44 Thai.


New York Times, United States