http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2005/08/02/1156734-cp.html Accident at Pearson airport TORONTO (CP) — An Air France passenger jet burst into flames after skidding off the runway while trying to land at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport. The number of passengers was not immediately available. Smoke billowed from a wooded area near Highway 401, Canada’s busiest highway as emergency crews sped to the scene. A portion of the plane’s wing could be seen jutting from the trees. Peel police say the craft was an Air France passenger jet that was attempting to land when it ran into trouble. “An Air France plane landing on runway 2-4 left went off the end of the runway the area of Convert Drive and the 401 area in Mississauga,” said Sgt. Glyn Griffiths. “Unknown at the time of any injuries. Flame was seen from the plane. And full response by all emergency vehicles.” He couldn’t say whether any passengers had been removed from the plane. -------- Not sure I posted this in the right forum, not really a light-hearted thread .
No casualties so far. It landed, skidded off the runway, then caught fire. Jet Bursts Into Flames on Landing in Toronto Tuesday, August 02, 2005 TORONTO — An Air France passenger jet caught fire after reportedly skidding off a runway at Toronto's Pearson International Airport (search) as it came in for a landing on Tuesday afternoon. There was no immediate word on casualties but Canadian media reported that the pilot and the co-pilot were out of the plane and safe. Early reports indicated that 291 people were on board the plane. Black smoke billowed from the wreckage as the aircraft burned. A row of emergency vehicles lined up behind the wreckage, and a fire truck sprayed the flames with water. A row of emergency vehicles lined up behind the wreckage, and a fire truck sprayed the flames with water. The operation was broadcast live on television in Canada and the United States. The flaming ruin was next to the four-lane Highway 401, Canada's busiest highway, and some cars and trucks stopped on the roadway after the crash. Police Sgt. Glyn Griffiths said it was not know if any passengers had been taken from the plane. Leah Walker, a radio reporter in Toronto, said she saw a third of the plane fall and that the rest became a fireball. "This plane attempted to land in some very fierce weather we had today," she said. The last major jumbo jet crash in North America was on Nov. 12, 2001, when American Airlines Flight 587 (search) lost part of its tail and plummeted into a New York City neighborhood, killing 265 people. Safety investigators concluded that the crash was caused by the pilot moving the rudder too aggressively. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,164534,00.html
