Phuket International Airport reopened its main runway on Wednesday afternoon, three hours after a Royal Thai Navy aircraft experienced a landing gear malfunction and blocked the runway.
The belly landing by the Cessna T-337 Skymaster, which the Navy said was on a routine patrol, happened at 11.18am. There were no injuries.
The incident prompted an immediate emergency response to remove the aircraft and to thoroughly inspect the surface. Airport officials initially said the runway would be closed until 3pm.
The recovery operation was carried out by Navy pilots, aircraft technicians and Phuket airport officials. The airport drained the aircraft’s fuel and arranged for lifting equipment to remove the plane.
The aircraft was successfully moved off the runway at 1.49pm. After cleaning up the oil stains, the runway was reopened at 2.30 pm.
The closure affected a total of 70 flights, airport officials said in a statement.
