Passengers on a Boeing 737-800 flight destined for Manchester experienced sheer panic when the pilot was forced to abort takeoff just as the plane lifted off the tarmac at an airport in Turkey earlier this week.
The shocking incident occurred on TUI flight TOM213, whose passengers had already endured a four-hour delay at Turkey’s Dalaman airport as safety crews inspected the aircraft following an engine malfunction.
Their ordeal got even worse when the moment of takeoff finally came, as the plane briefly lifted off the runway before nosediving back down and skidding along the tarmac at high speed.
Horror footage from inside the cabin showed customers screaming in terror in the moments after the impact which jolted many passengers forward, causing them to smash their faces into the seats in front.
The worrying incident represents the latest mishap for the embattled American aerospace company whose aircraft have suffered a litany of issues in recent months.
Horror footage from inside the cabin showed customers screaming in terror in the moments after the impact which jolted many passengers forward, causing them to smash their faces into the seats in front
One passenger shared the horrendous experience to social media
The pilot aborted the takeoff at a speed of 175 mph, passengers recalled him saying. Passengers are seen bracing against the chairs in front
One passenger recounted the horrific experience to The Sun, saying: ‘I thought we had crashed into another plane. As we were skidding, a flight attendant was on her knees saying: ”I’ve got three children!”.
‘Babies were crying, and mothers couldn’t even reassure them. We all thought we were going to die.’
The pilot aborted the takeoff at a speed of 175 mph, passengers recalled him saying, which caused the plane to suffer a sickening impact before skidding across the runway for some 10 seconds before it eventually ground to a halt.
Passengers were heard screaming ‘get me off!’, but were forced to remain locked in the cabin for another 30 minutes as emergency services and fire crews surrounded the stricken jet.
In the aftermath, the pilot addressed the traumatised passengers via the loudspeaker.
‘We had another malfunction on the aircraft. It does seem quite dramatic – I know it’s upsetting.’
But the announcement did little to put passengers at ease, with many already suspecting the plane was not in a safe condition after teams had spent four hours correcting an engine fault earlier that day.
One passenger expressed frustration over the pilot’s explanation, declaring: ‘The plane was never safe to fly. I’m glad the pilot pulled out of the landing because God knows what would have happened otherwise.’
Reports later revealed that the same plane had been diverted from Lisbon two days earlier due to technical issues, while some passengers claimed they could smell burning fuel at the back of the plane.
TUI Airways Boeing 737-800
Shocking footage showed the moment a Boeing plane attempted an emergency landing, smashing down into the runway and scraping its nose along the concrete in Turkey
Shocking images revealed the plane operated by Senegalese carrier Transair nestled in the dirt with a gaping hole in the left engine that was covered in firefighting foam in the aftermath of the blaze
The Boeing 737 jet carrying 73 passengers caught on fire and suffered serious damage when a failed takeoff attempt sent it skidding off the runway early this morning
TUI representatives asked the travellers to stay in Turkey for another three days and rebooked them on the same jet, but many refused to travel on the stricken plane and instead were forced to fine accommodation.
One passenger spent £300 on an alternative flight with Spirit Airlines, vowing never to fly with TUI again, and all are waiting for information about how to obtain compensation for the delays and extra costs, not to mention the traumatic experience they endured.
A TUI UK and Ireland spokesperson said in a statement: ‘We are sorry to hear of the experiences from customers following the delayed departure of flight TOM213 from Dalaman to Manchester.
‘Whilst we always aim to get our customers to and from their holiday as safely and smoothly as possible, unfortunately, on this occasion, a technical issue delayed the departure of the flight.
‘All customers will automatically receive flight delay compensation, and we will be taking the learnings from this incident to improve communication with our customers moving forward.’
MailOnline has contacted Boeing for comment.
Boeing planes have suffered a string of issues as of late with the aerospace firm coming under fire after whistleblowers claimed quality control procedures were breached and many planes left factories with defects.
The manufacturer is also under investigation in the US for allegedly breaching the terms of a 2021 agreement in which the company avoided charges related to the crashes of two 737 MAX aircraft that left hundreds dead.
Meanwhile, the incident in which the TUI flight’s nose smashed into the runway in Turkey on Monday was eerily reminiscent of several accidents that occurred over the course of just two days last month.
A Boeing plane’s tyre burst during landing in Turkey today, the third passenger aircraft built by the manufacturing giant to suffer a technical problem or crash in just two days.
A total of 190 people were evacuated from one 737-800 aircraft belonging to Turkey-based Corendon Airlines when the flight smashed into the runway and skidded after the front landing gear crumpled on touchdown on May 9.
While none of the 184 passengers and six crew members on the flight from Cologne were injured, that dramatic landing followed another mishap just one day prior at another Turkish airport.
In that accident, a Boeing 767 cargo plane operated by FedEx made an emergency landing in Istanbul after its front landing gear failed.
Dramatic video showed the nose of the plane grinding across the tarmac as smoke and sparks poured from its fuselage and engines.
Between those two incidents, terrified passengers were forced to flee a burning Boeing 737-300 jet carrying 78 passengers that skidded off the runway and caught fire during take-off in Senegal.
There is no suggestion Boeing are to blame for the crashes.
Shocking footage emerged of the moment terrified passengers fled a burning Boeing jet that skidded off the runway and caught fire in Senegal in May
A clip taken by one horrified passenger showed a female customer sprinting away from the scene of the wreckage as flames poured from the 737’s left engine, lighting up the night sky
The passengers could be seen leaping from the door and sliding down emergency evacuation slides away from the flames
Emergency crews rushed to evacuate the passengers, eleven of whom were injured, four seriously so
A Boeing 738 plane of Corendon Airlines that operated Cologne-Antalya flight gets stuck on runway due to a burst tire in Antalya, Turkiye on May 9, 2024
Pictures from the scene in Turkey showed the stationary aircraft on the tarmac flanked by emergency vehicles – its front wheels and landing gear crumpled underneath. Corendon Airlines denied Turkish reports that the aircraft had landed on its nose
Boeing has also been accused of letting safety lapse as it obsesses over ‘woke’ diversity targets in staffing, as well as over-paying executives working from home.
Current CEO Dave Calhoun announced in March he would be stepping down at the end of this year in a management overhaul, with share prices plunging.
And passengers are said to be deliberately changing flights to avoid Boeing’s fleet or travelling with anti-anxiety medication.
In the case of the crash landing in Senegal, the plane suffered serious damage when a failed takeoff attempt sent it careening off the tarmac and into the bush at Blaise Diagne airport near the capital city Dakar.
A clip taken by one horrified traveller showed a female customer fleeing the scene of the wreckage as flames poured from the 737’s left engine, lighting up the night sky.
Emergency crews rushed to evacuate the passengers, eleven of whom were injured, four seriously so.
In the case of the FedEx plane, the flight had taken off from Paris’ Charles de Gaulle airport early on May 8 and was bound for Istanbul when the pilot realised the landing gear was malfunctioning.
Unsettling footage showed the moment the plane attempted an emergency landing, touching down into the runway and scraping its nose along the concrete.
Sparks flew from the plane’s tattered fuselage as it crunched along the tarmac with smoke billowing from behind.
Fortunately, firefighters and rescue teams were already waiting at the scene, with Turkey’s transport ministry having dispatched emergency teams as soon as it learned that the pilot’s landing gear was not working.
The first responders flocked to surround the plane as it ground to a halt and immediately doused it with firefighting foam to prevent any potential fire from sparking.
No one was injured in the incident and the crew safely evacuated the aircraft, said Abdulkadir Uraloglu, Turkey’s transportation and infrastructure minister.