Halifax passenger recounts AC624 crash-landing, 50 minute wait on the runway

Tuesday, March 31, 2015, 5:36 PM - In the wake of the recent 'hard landing' of an Air Canada flight at Halifax Stanfield International Airport, passengers huddled for warmth under the tarp of a nearby fire engine, some of which were dressed only shorts and t-shirts.

CONTACTING A PASSENGER

Using social media The Weather Network’s Nate Coleman spoke to Ben Taylor, a passenger on flight AC624, who described the moments prior to clipping the antenna array that stripped the Airbus of its landing gear, forcing pilots to land the vessel on its belly.

WEATHER CONDITIONS BEFORE THE LANDING

Weather at the time of the landing was described as wintry, with wind gusts fluctuating between 40 km/h and a recorded maximum of over 100 km/h by 1 a.m. local time. The temperature also dipped into the minus double-digits in the early morning hours.

After exiting the plane via the emergency chutes, passengers waited for almost an hour on the tarmac before airport crews were able to determine the crash scene was safe and that passengers could be moved indoors.

STANDING ON THE RUNWAY

The flight came to rest 335 metres down the runway, and as one passenger told CBC 'thousands of metres' away from the terminal. Taylor mentioned he was able to grab his backpack with some warm clothes before exiting the plane, and offered some items to other passengers who were without winter gear due to connecting flights from the south.

DETAILS AROUND THE RESPONSE

Early reports indicated that the antenna array the plane took out on its descent cut power to the airport, leaving much of the airport without lighting, electricity or internet-based phone services for more than an hour and may have caused the delay in response time. But new information indicates that the lines damaged by the crash supplied power to neighbouring residents, and not the airport.

QUITE THE STORY TO TELL

Taylor was on the flight to return to Halifax to be with with his young son in hospital, who is now resting up and will have quite the story to tell when he is old enough:

Sources: CBC