Russian plane lands on its belly after gear malfunction, no injuries

A Russian plane with at least 100 people on board crash-landed on its belly in the north of the country due to problems with its landing gear on February 9. The company and officials also said that no one was injured in the incident when the Utair Boeing 737 was afflicted by a sudden change in the direction of the winds while it was landing at Usinsk airport in the northern Komi region. The plane was already on the tarmac when the malfunction occurred. 

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Utair reportedly said that the airport's instrument landing system was not working and the runway lighting was also out at the time of crash landing. The images shared online also showing the jet landed in its belly on the snow-covered tarmac and the passengers were scrambled to evacuate. According to international reports, none of the 94 passengers along with six crew members were severely injured, however, one passenger sought medical assistance. 

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Airlines thanked crew members

The airlines also thanked the 'quick and highly-professional actions' by the crew members who made it possible to keep the plane on the landing strip until it fully stopped. Furthermore, Utair also lauded the 'experienced' crew by quoting that a pilot who has more than 6,900 hours of flight time. Meanwhile, a spokesperson from the local branch of the emergencies ministry told an international agency that 'the plane landed on its tail' and the passengers along with the crew evacuated through the emergency slides. 

However, the head of the Komi region Sergei Gaplikov in a statement called the Usinsk airport incident as 'unacceptable' and expressed relief that 'no one has been seriously hurt'. Utair reportedly also grounded its scheduled flights for February 10 from Usinsk to Moscow due to the condition of landing strip being 'unsatisfactory'. International media reports also stated that the critics have noted the poor aircraft maintenance and lax safety standards which has one of the worst safety records in the world.

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(With agency inputs)