BY JAY CHUA

A TURBO-PROP airplane of Asian Spirit overshot the runway of the Masbate national airport yesterday morning but nobody was hurt among the 43 passengers, including the pilot and three crewmembers.

The flight originated from the Manila Domestic Airport.

"The plane was not damaged but it had to be towed," said Rodolfo Garcia, Asian Spirit’s vice president for operations. "One of its wheel sets was outside the runway."

Asian Spirit is a Manila-based airline that flies to about two dozen domestic destinations.

According to a statement from the company, Flight 6K321, a Japanese-made YS 11A200, had just touched down at around 6:55 a.m. when "a sudden strong gust caused by a tail wind affected the plane."

The three-decade-old, 60-seater plane swerved to the right to avoid hitting the concrete perimeter fence but its right propeller was damaged and the plane lost one landing wheel.

The pilot, Capt. Alexandro Tiglao, managed to bring the plane to the landing area despite the abnormal wind condition.

Asian Spirit said it has taken care of all the passengers and made sure everybody left the airport safe and well.

It also said it would temporarily ground the plane for a checkup.

Sources at the Air Transportation Office said Masbate airport is a single-entry runway, meaning that it uses only one end for landing and another end for takeoff because of runway limitations.

The YS A200, a short to medium range airliner, is one of the most trusted all-weather planes in the world. Made by Japanese, it has a maximum cruising speed of 470 kph with a maximum payload of 1,090 kg. – With Reuters