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Some passengers onboard a plane that overshot Guernsey's runway were surprised that there was even a problem, despite a "full emergency" being declared.
A Dash 8 Luxwing leased by Aurigny came to rest on grass at the western end of the airport after overshooting the runway at 18:43 yesterday [23 April].
Grace Atkinson, returning after completing the London Marathon, was one of those onboard.
“I’m a very nervous traveller and to be honest I’ve been on worse flights where I’ve felt terrified,” she said.
“This all happened quickly and the plane stopped quickly once we hit the grass.”
She had her children with her and they did not even realise there was a problem.
“The captain came out and apologised and said a bus was organised to come and get us ASAP,” she said.
Other passengers remained calm too. “Everyone else was just chatting among themselves, patiently waiting to get off the plane.”
Airport Firefighters were quickly on the scene, while the other emergency services were stood down while still on route.
There were no injuries among the 63 passengers and four crew on board.
“Once the bus arrived we were allowed off first as we had the children and the crew helped anybody that needed assistance. I was surprised at how quickly we got our bags back too!” continued Grace.
Another Aurigny pilot came into the terminal while passengers were waiting for bags, to check that everyone was ok. An Aurigny representative also called later to check in with the passengers.
No damage was reported to the aircraft, which was towed to the apron shortly after 20:30. There was no damage to runway or airfield ground lighting, and the airport was able to reopen at 20:55.
The last outbound Southampton flight was cancelled and the airport was closed for two hours after the incident.
UK Air Accident Investigation Branch representatives will visit the island as part of an investigation into the incident.
Both Aurigny and Guernsey Ports released statements following the incident, you can read them ONLINE.
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