Cargo plane goes off runway at Halifax Stanfield affecting several flights (update)

With files from Canadian Press

A 747 cargo plane went off the runway at Halifax Stanfield International Airport on Wednesday morning, causing significant delays and cancellations at the airport. 

Halifax International Airport Authority spokesperson Theresa Rath-Spicer said the incident is believed to have happened as the Skylease jet was landing at just after 5 a.m. 

Initial reports said there were five crew members on the plane, but the airport authority amended that number to four later in the morning.

“They have been removed and were transported to hospital for treatment for what are described as minor injuries,” Rath-Spicer said.

The airfield was closed earlier this morning, however the airport's main runway reopened just before 8:30 a.m.

Some flight delays have continued into Wednesday afternoon and Rath-Spicer suggested anyone scheduled to fly check with their airlines as to the flight's status.

For a list of arrivals and departures, head to the airport's website.

Old Guysborough Rd was closed local traffic for part of the investigation, however it has since reopened.

Flight KKE 4854 was a scheduled arrival from Chicago to Halifax.

Rath-Spicer could not say why the jet overshot the runway.

“At this time we're working with all officials to ensure this is handled effectively, and that does include the national Transportation Safety Board,” said Rath-Spicer. 

The plane was sitting on a slight incline far off the runway and within about 50 metres from a fence that marks the perimeter of the airport boundary. Two of its engines appeared to be attached but were heavily damaged, while two other engines appeared to be sheared off completely.

The landing gear was not visible and the nose of the white aircraft sustained moderate damage, but the underside of the plane appeared to be cracked and heavily damaged.

Mangled debris was scattered behind the plane.

Several fire trucks and RCMP vehicles were surrounding the plane on what was a warm, misty day. It appeared that the plane had been sprayed with foam by one of the fire trucks, but there was no apparent sign of a fire.

An aluminum ladder trailed from a main door near the front of the aircraft that was open.

District chief Gord West said the Halifax fire department responded to assist the airport's fire unit.

“We respond with water supply and manpower,” West said. “There are no hydrants on the runways so we use tankers to shuttle water back and forth.”

Halifax fire deputy chief Roy Hollett said crews had dug a trench around the aircraft to guard against a fuel leak.

“Everything they can do has been done for anything emergency related,” Hollett said. “All the hazards are contained and controlled.”

Chris Krepski, spokesman with the Transportation Safety Board of Canada, said investigators were en route to the site and will examine the aircraft and the surrounding terrain, interview possible witnesses and crew members and take possession of the flight data recorders.

No one from SkyLease was immediately available for comment.

In August, Stanfield airport announced SkyLease Cargo was operating two flights a week for First Catch, a Chinese-owned seafood freight forwarding company.

It said SkyLease's 747-400 aircraft had the capacity to carry up to 120 tonnes of Nova Scotia seafood to China.

A press release said it would make two flights weekly; the inaugural flight from Halifax was greeted with a water cannon salute on arrival in Changsha, the capital of China's Hunan province.

The airport said it handled 34,051 tonnes of cargo in 2017.

It is at least the third serious incident at Stanfield in 15 years.

A passenger plane crashed during a blizzard on March 29, 2015, injuring 25 people. Air Canada Flight 624 bounced into the air and crashed near the runway threshold before careening along the tarmac. Federal investigators blamed approach procedures, poor visibility and lighting.

On Oct. 14, 2004, a British-based MK Airlines 747 went down just beyond the runway during takeoff, killing seven crew members. The Boeing aircraft dragged its tail before breaking up and bursting into flames in a wooded area. No one survived.

A lengthy investigation by the Transportation Safety Board of Canada found that crew fatigue and inadequate software training led the crew to enter incorrect information and caused the plane to set the throttles too low for a good takeoff.