Airplane rolls off Pensacola runway
No one injured; flights diverted to other airports
Michael Stewart@PensacolaNewsJournal.com
No one was injured when a Delta MD-80 airplane landing at Pensacola Regional Airport ran off the runway Friday night with 140 passengers and five crew members on board.
Incoming flights into Pensacola were canceled Friday night after the incident about 6:30 p.m. Runway 17 is the only one where instrument landings are allowed, and fog rolling in made visual landings at remaining runways too dangerous, Pensacola Fire Department Capt. Steve Ward said.
Incoming flights were either diverted to other nearby airports, such as Mobile's, or the flights simply bypassed the area altogether, he said.
The incident happened when the aircraft, coming in from Atlanta, left the end of Runway 17 and continued rolling in the dirt for another 50 to 75 yards, Ward said.
The airplane wheels sunk into the soft dirt, slowing the airplane down. He said there was no visible damage to the aircraft. Friday night, a crew from Atlanta was brought in to try and figure out how to get the airplane back on solid ground.
The cause of the accident was unknown Friday night. The Federal Aviation Administration is expected to investigate.
