Source/Credit: NDTV

Air India Express Flight IX 1344 from Dubai to Kozhikode overshot the runway while landing around 7:40 pm.



New Delhi/Thiruvananthapuram: At least 17 people were killed after an Air India Express plane with 190 on board from Dubai skidded off the runway and broke in two while landing at Kerala's Kozhikode on Friday amid heavy rain, the police said.

Among those killed were the two pilots of Flight IX 1344, authorities said. Four people are still stuck inside, the Kerala Police chief said.

Most on board have been evacuated and at least 50 injured, including 15 in serious condition, have been taken to hospital, authorities said.

There were 174 passengers, 10 Infants, two pilots and four cabin crew members on board the aircraft.

The flight was part of the Vande Bharat programme that has been bringing back Indians from abroad amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Television images from the site showed part of the fuselage of the Boeing 737 jet ripped apart with debris strewn all over.

The incident took place amid very heavy rainfall in the area around 7:40 pm. Emergency services personnel were seen working in the dark and spraying the wreckage with water.