The Pegasus Airlines jet came within yards of plunging into the Black Sea when it skidded off the tarmac at Trabzon Airport on Saturday
DRAMATIC footage has emerged showing inside a plane moments after it skidded off a runway and stopped on a hill just feet from the sea.
The Pegasus Airlines jet came within yards of plunging into the freezing waters of the Black Sea when it skidded off the tarmac at Trabzon Airport in Turkey on Saturday.
And footage shot inside the aircraft by terrified passengers shows them desperately trying to escape the plane.
Foam can be seen drifting in through open emergency exits as the plane is hosed down by fire crews to prevent it bursting into flames.
Children can be heard screaming as the passengers climb up the slope to the back of the aircraft – which has come to rest on a steep slope.
All 162 passenger and six crew were safely evacuated but the plane remains stricken on the side of the muddy embankment – with the aircraft now secured with a cable to prevent it from slipping into the sea.
The terrifying accident was caused when the plane suddenly turned after a surge of power in one of its engines, pilots told investigators in comments published today.
The pilot, co-pilot and crew have now made statements to Trabzon prosecutors and both pilots passed breathalyser tests, Turkey’s Dogan news agency said.
The pilot was quoted as telling the prosecutors: "When we were going to make our usual manoeuvre towards the right from the seaside by reducing our speed, the right engine suddenly gained speed for a reason we do not know.
"Due to this speed, the plane got out of our control and suddenly swung to the left and got stuck into the mud in the cliff."
It is still not clear what caused the sudden surge in power from the right engine.
Images published by Dogan showed that one of the engines had fallen into the water.
The pilot said passengers were ordered to leave the plane by the back door without taking personal belongings, followed by the crew and finally the pilots themselves.
Turkey's civil aviation authority will meanwhile examine the plane's black box.
Trabzon's airport was closed for a time but is now operating normally.
Work to remove the plane from its current position is due to begin today, Dogan reported.
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