DHL’s Boeing 757-200 cargo plane made an emergency landing at Costa Rica’s San Jose Juan Santamaria international airport, slid off the runway, and split in half.
DHL, a subsidiary of Deutsche Post AG, stated that the crew was undamaged and that a doctor was examining one member as a preventive measure.
Images from the Costa Rican daily La Nacion showed a yellow jet with the DHL insignia being drenched with firefighting foam after landing on a grassy field near a runway. According to the images, the tail had separated, and a wing had shattered.
According to Luis Miranda Munoz, deputy head of Costa Rica’s civil aviation authority, the plane was on its way to Guatemala when it allegedly suffered a hydraulic system malfunction. According to him, the problem forced the pilot to request an emergency landing shortly after takeoff.
A representative for Boeing Co said the company would defer queries to the investigative authorities. DHL and airport authorities said they were trying to relocate the aircraft, but it was not hindering operations.
“DHL’s incident response team has been activated, and an investigation will be conducted with the relevant authorities to determine what happened,” DHL said.
According to airport operator Aeris, the airport on the outskirts of San Jose reopened at 3.30 p.m. local time, around five hours after the disaster and several hours ahead of schedule.
The closure impacted 8,500 passengers and 57 commercial and cargo planes, according to Aeris.
