Plane tire punctured in Makassar airport landing

MAKASSAR: A Sriwijaya Air aircraft suffered a punctured tire when landing at Sultan Hasanuddin International Airport, Makassar, South Sulawesi on Thursday.

All 118 passengers and six crew were safe.

A wheel on the right side of the 737-200 airplane, which was flying from Surabaya to Makassar and Kendari, Southeast Sulawesi, was punctured on runaway at 2:30 p.m.

Airport operator PT Angkasa Pura I's information system manager, Kintoron, said passengers on the plane were evacuated.

The incident caused the closure of the airport for about half an hour and delayed 11 flights. Six flights scheduled to land at the airport were diverted to a nearby airport. - JP