A plane belonging to "Tibet Airlines" skidded off the runway at Chongqing International Airport in southwestern China on Thursday morning, catching fire and injuring some passengers, according to the Chinese airline. Tibet Airlines stated in a statement that all 113 passengers and nine crew members on board the aircraft were "safely evacuated."
The airline added that approximately 40 passengers sustained minor injuries and they were all taken to the hospital for treatment.
The aircraft was preparing for takeoff on a domestic flight from Chongqing to Nyingchi when the incident occurred around 08:09 (00:09 GMT).
The statement clarified that "during the takeoff phase, the crew noticed a malfunction and halted the procedure. The aircraft skidded off the runway."
The company also mentioned that "the aircraft was damaged as a result of the incident."
Meanwhile, state broadcaster CCTV aired footage showing the plane on the runway with a large fireball next to it, emitting thick black smoke.
Initially, the network reported that the plane was heading to Lhasa, the capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region, before correcting this information.
This marks the second aviation incident in China in less than two months. On March 21, a Boeing 737-800 on a domestic flight between Kunming and Guangzhou crashed for unknown reasons from an altitude of 29,000 feet, ultimately crashing on the side of a mountain. This incident resulted in the deaths of all 132 people on board, making it the deadliest aviation disaster in the country in nearly 30 years, although overall aviation safety in China is generally considered good.
