Stricken aircraft belly lands in New Zealand

Aircraft pieces flew in the air as an Eagle Air plane with 17 people on board made an emergency crash landing at Blenheim Airport yesterday morning after landing gear failed.

The Air New Zealand Beech aircraft, with 15 passengers and two crew aboard, had tried to land at Wellington when the crew found a problem with its landing gear.



The flight from Timaru to Wellington was diverted to Blenheim after the fault was detected.

Fire engines, ambulances, police and other support staff rushed to the scene under a full emergency alert as the plane circled above Woodbourne for about half an hour, preparing for a crash landing.



Just after 9am, the Beech 1900D plane came in low, skidded along the grass and then came to a halt on the runway to the relieved applause of emergency crews and airport staff.

Flt Sgt Gee told Radio New Zealand the landing was fairly uneventful, given the circumstances.