At Least Three Dead After Pegasus Airlines Plane Skids Off Runway and Breaks Into Pieces With 177 People on Board

Three passengers that were on board the Pegasus Airlines flight that skidded off the runway at Istanbul's Sabiha Gokcen airport on Wednesday have died.

The aircraft flown by the low-cost carrier was set to arrive at Istanbul’s Sabiha Gokcen airport after taking off from the Turkish city of Izmir. It then suffered a “rough landing,” the Turkish Transportation Ministry said.

The airline confirmed the news in a press release early Thursday morning, noting other passengers are still being hospitalized. Specifically a reported 157 passengers are injured, including the plane's two pilots.

"Pegasus Airlines shares in the profound sorrow of all the people affected by this tragic accident," the press release read. "Above all, we would like to express our profound sympathy and heartfelt condolences to those families and friends who have lost loved ones and extend our thoughts to them at this difficult time. Our injured passengers continue to be treated in hospital and we wish them all a swift recovery."

The flight was carrying 183 people, including six crew members, crashed into a road and broke into three pieces, according to The Associated Press.

Wounded people are being carried to Kartal Training and Research Hospital after a passenger plane skidded off the runway in Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International Airport, on February 05, 2020 in Istanbul, Turkey. | Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
Wounded people are being carried to Kartal Training and Research Hospital after a passenger plane skidded off the runway in Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International Airport, on February 05, 2020 in Istanbul, Turkey. | Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

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A view of the site as firefighters, paramedics conducting operations and injured passengers are being dispatching to hospitals after a passenger plane skidded off the runway in Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International Airport, breaking into two, on February 05, 2020 in Istanbul, Turkey. ( | Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
A view of the site as firefighters, paramedics conducting operations and injured passengers are being dispatching to hospitals after a passenger plane skidded off the runway in Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International Airport, breaking into two, on February 05, 2020 in Istanbul, Turkey. ( | Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

"We are deploying every resource to support those affected by this accident. Pegasus Airlines’ priority is to support the relatives and friends who have lost loved ones, and we will be doing everything we can to help them in the aftermath of this tragic event, as well as doing our utmost to provide our full support in meeting the needs in hospital of our injured passengers," the press release concluded.

This, however, is not the first time a Pegasus Airlines flight has skidded off this very same runway. The AP also noted that just one month ago, a similar incident occured while the plane was carrying 164 passengers. And in January 2018, another one of its planes slid off a runway at northeastern Turkey’s Trabzon Airport with its nose facing the Black Sea. None of those 168 passengers were injured either.