GUWAHATI: Eight crew members of a Myanmar Air Force aircraft were injured after it overshot the runway of Lengpui airport in Mizoram on Tuesday.
The cargo plane arrived to take back the remaining 92 of the 276 Myanmar Army personnel who had crossed over after their camps were overrun by ethnic armed groups fighting for democracy in the neighbouring country.
The aircraft was damaged in the incident. The Lengpui airport has a tabletop runway measuring 2.5 km. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation reportedly ordered a probe into the incident.
In a statement, the Mizoram government said 14 crew members were on board the aircraft and eight were injured. The injured were initially taken to the Lengpui primary health centre and later shifted to a hospital in Aizawl. They sustained minor injuries, the statement said.
After the mishap, the airport runway was temporarily closed, and all flights were cancelled for the day.
Earlier, officials of Mizoram’s disaster management department, district administration, and police rushed to the airport, some 35 km from Aizawl, and rescued the injured people.
Since November last year, 636 Myanmar soldiers have crossed over into Mizoram amid their violent clashes with the pro-democracy forces. They fled to Mizoram after their camp was overrun and captured by 'Arakan Army' fighters.
On January 17, the 276 soldiers, led by a colonel, had fled to the northeastern state along with their arms and ammunition. The group had 36 officers. On Monday, 184 were flown back. The remaining 92 soldiers were supposed to be repatriated on Tuesday.
After the 276 soldiers had reached a village in the Lawngtlai district, they were taken to an Assam Rifles camp at Parva. Later, a majority of them were shifted to Lunglei. Necessary medical support was also given to them, a Mizoram government official said.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has ordered an investigation into the crash, a state government official said.
"All incoming flights have been diverted. When flight services, incoming and outgoing, will resume is yet to be known. Hoping all passengers would be able to either fly in or fly out as soon as possible, especially people with medical emergency," she said.
Mizoram shares a 510-km-long border with Myanmar.