A Pegas Fly Boeing 767 skidded off the runway after landing at Crimea's Simferopol International Airport. The plane ended up stuck in the mud. The airport subsequently suspended operations pending runway clearance and certification for flight operations. No passengers were injured in the incident.

Oops

The incident occurred following Pegas Fly (or Ikar Airlines) flight IK-123 from Moscow Sheremetyevo to Crimea Simferopol Airport. The flight departed Moscow at 08:13 AM local time, a few minutes behind schedule, and began the 2 hour and 30-minute journey to Crimea.

The aircraft touched in Crimea on Runway 19 at 10:20 AM, 25 minutes before its scheduled arrival. However, while landing, the aircraft skid off the runway and veered to the right, resulting in the nose and right landing gear finding themselves stuck in the mud, according to AvHerald. Images of the incident can be seen below.

The plane came to a stop 2,310 meters down the 3,700m long runway. Sources also report a wet runway with 3mm of water due to rain that morning. Luckily, none of the 284 passengers onboard the aircraft were injured during this incident. An investigation has been launched into the cause of the incident.

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Operations impacted

Data from FlightRadar24.com shows that dozens of flights were diverted or canceled due to the incident, with many more delayed. Since Simferopol only has one active runway, the 767 first had to be cleared off the area, and the runway checked for damage before flights could land once again. This means Crimea Airport was closed for several hours while this was completed.

The first flight to land at Simferopol since the incident was at 14:12 local time. This meant the airport was closed for nearly four hours as the runway was cleared. However, delays continue to plague the airport for now.

Pegas Fly Ikar Boeing 767-300
The aircraft involved in the incident, pictured here, is a 22-year-old Boeing 767-300ER. Photo: Anna Zvereva via Wikimedia Commons

Every flight currently operating to and from Crimea Airport is from Russia. This due to the status of Crimea among the international community. While formally a part of Ukraine, the region was annexed by Russia by 2014, resulting in many carriers pulling operations from the airport.

Currently, only Russian airlines service the airport. The city has emerged as a popular leisure destination as Russians look to avoid testing and quarantines.

Aircraft

The aircraft involved in today's incident is a Pegas Fly Boeing 767-300ER, registered VP-BMC, which is 22 years old. Data from ch-aviation shows that the plane has had a long journey to its current operator. The 767 began its life with Trans World Airlines in August 1999, before going to American Airlines in 2001 (following its acquisition of TWA).

Following its retirement from American in the next year, it went on to Air China in June 2003. It served with the airline in 2010, when it moved to GMG Airlines in Bangladesh. In 2012, the 767 made its way to Nordwind Airlines and finally Pegas Fly in 2014.

TWA Boeing 767-300ER
The aircraft began its life in 1999 with Trans World Airlines and has since had quite a long road to Russia. Photo: Aero Icarus via Flickr

The aircraft remains on the ground in Crimea at the time of writing. It will likely undergo further checks before flying back to its base in Moscow for inspection and investigation.