CEBU, PHILIPPINES — A Korean Air Airbus A330-300 jet with 173 people on board overshot the runway at Cebu International Airport in the Philippines late on Sunday. No injuries were reported.

Korean Air Flight KE631 from Seoul to Cebu had tried twice to land in poor weather before it overran the runway on the third attempt at 23:07 local time. The plane overshot the runway by several hundred meters and tore the bow on an antenna system. The aircraft stopped shortly before the airport fences. The pictures from the scene of the accident show extensive damage to the Korean A330. The nose landing gear appeared to have collapsed. The engines of the aircraft were also damaged.


"Passengers have been evacuated safely and placed in three local hotels, and an alternative flight is being arranged. We are currently identifying the cause of the incident." the airline said.

Due to the runway closure, flights to Cebu had to divert to other airports or return to their departure bases.

Korean Air President Keehong Woo issued an apology on the airline's website, saying a thorough investigation would be carried out by Philippine and South Korean authorities to determine the cause.


"We remain committed to standing behind our promise of safe operations and will do our very best to institute measures to prevent its recurrence," Woo said.

The Cebu airport issued a statement on its Facebook page about the incident. The airport management said the airport had temporarily been closed to landings and departures while the teams were working to remove the severely damaged aircraft.

The A330-300 jet with registration HL7525 involved in the accident was delivered to Korean Air by Airbus in 1998.