100 Escape On Ladders After Air India Plane Rolled Into Kochi Drain

Kochi: There were more than 100 people on board an Air India plane that veered off the runway after landing at the Kochi airport this morning and rolled into a drain.

The Boeing from Abu Dhabi landed in heavy rain.

102 passengers and six crew members were evacuated using ladders and there were no injuries, said an Air India spokesperson.

"During heavy rains last night at about 2:40 am, while entering the bay from the taxiway at Kochi, our aircraft, a Boeing 737-800 skidded off the taxiway," the spokesperson said in a statement.
 The wheels of plane got stuck in a storm water drain on the side of the runway, opposite the international airport terminal, he added.

The nose-wheel of the aircraft collapsed after it skidded off the runway, reported the Press Trust of India.

The flight was operated by Air India Express, the international budget arm of the government-owned Air India.

In July, an Air India Express passenger  plane from Dubai moved off the runway after landing in Mangalore; nobody was injured in that accident.