Britons among Thai plane crash survivors

Eight Britons are among the 42 known survivors of a plane which crashed on the Thai resort island of Phuket, killing at least 88 people.The McDonnell Douglas MD-82 jet is said to have landed "heavily" in strong winds and driving monsoon rains and skidded off the runway, bursting into flames.The One-Two-Go budget airline flight from Bangkok was carrying 123 passengers and seven crew, airport officials said.Around half of the passengers were foreign holidaymakers, most of them European.Nineteen people are still unaccounted for. Those known to have survived include the eight Britons, seven Thais and two Australians.British passengers are among those being treated at the Bangkok Phuket Hospital.Chaisak Chai-arkad, a senior airport official in Bangkok, said: "The first part of the plane is dug into the ground. The tail section is stuck on the runway."TV images showed the crumpled and smoking fuselage of the plane surrounded by fire trucks and emergency workers. Part of the plane could be seen in trees alongside the runway.Nong Khaonual, a Thai who survived the crash with his wife, said he believed the plane had descended too quickly."The airplane was landing in heavy rain. It landed too fast. I have never seen anything like this. It descended very fast."Just before we touched the runway we felt the plane try to lift up, and it skidded off the runway," he said."My wife was half conscious and I dragged her out of the emergency exit. There was a man behind us and he was on fire."An Irishman named John, who was travelling with friends who also survived, said it was clear there was a problem before the attempt to land."You could tell there was a problem. The plane was flying around trying to land. It was making some noises and it was bad rain."The plane was on fire, but I managed to get through. I might have come out on the wing," he said.© Independent Television News Limited 2007. All rights reserved.

ITN | September 16, 2007

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