On Saturday, February 3, 2024, an Avion Express Airbus A320-200, registered as LY-NVL, experienced a significant incident during its landing at Vilnius Airport in Lithuania. The aircraft was performing flight X9-8242 from Milan Bergamo, Italy.
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The Incident
The aircraft landed on Vilnius' runway 19 at approximately 14:19 local time (12:19Z). However, it veered right off the runway onto soft ground, crossing a turnoff before returning to the runway centerline at about 5 knots over the ground. The aircraft subsequently vacated the runway via the next turn-off and taxied to the apron. As the plane slid into the grass, mud began to spray on the windows and the fuselage, causing substantial damage to the aircraft. The occurrence aircraft remained on the ground in Vilnius for about 6 hours after landing.
Passengers and Crew
The A320 was carrying 179 passengers and six crew members at the time of the incident. There have been no reports of injuries.
Impact on Vilnius Airport
Due to the incident, Vilnius airport was forced to halt all incoming and outgoing flights temporarily on Saturday. The disruption to the airport's operations underscores the severity of the incident.
Investigation
The exact cause of the incident is currently unknown and will be the subject of a thorough investigation. Safety remains the top priority in aviation, and incidents like these are taken very seriously.