Leeds Bradford Airport closed after plane skids off runway in stormon October 20, 2023 at 5:07 pm

A holiday jet skidded off a runway as it came in to land amid wet and windy conditions as Storm Babet swept the UK.

The TUI flight from Corfu “moved off the runway whilst landing” at Leeds Bradford Airport (LBA) on Friday afternoon, the firm said.

LBA said all passengers had been safely taken off the plane and the airport had closed, with travellers urged to check with airlines before setting off.

West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said there were no injuries or fires.

An LBA spokesperson said: “We can confirm there are no reported injuries from this incident and that all passengers have now safely disembarked the aircraft. The airport is now closed.

“We are working with the airline, relevant operations teams and emergency authorities to resolve this situation and return services safely as quickly as possible.

“We ask passengers to contact their airline to check the status of their flight before travelling to the airport.”

The fire service said its “command unit has now been stood down”.

The Environment Agency (EA) said flood alerts and warnings had been issued due to “continued heavy rain” brought on by Storm Babet.

Live coverage as Storm Babet sweeps UK

One person believed to be onboard the stricken jet posted pictures from the plane on social media and said they were “going to be here a while” after commenting on the “interesting landing”.

“Oops overshot runway at Leeds Bradford airport, bogged down on the grass – interesting landing greeted by fire engines and airport authorities,” they said.

“Going to be here a while.”

Another eyewitness posting on Facebook said she was at the airport when the “TUI plane skidded off [the] runway” with “a bumpy hard landing”.

A TUI UK&I spokesperson said: “We are aware of an incident at Leeds Bradford Airport this afternoon during the landing of flight TOM3551.”There are no reported injuries, and our ground team are on hand to support passengers as they disembark.”

Mike Dugher, the EA’s Yorkshire area director, urged people to check the latest safety advice “as heavy downpours are likely to fall on saturated ground”.

“Persistent and heavy rain brought by a combination of Storm Babet and following weather systems means significant river flooding is possible in the North of England and East Midlands on Friday and Saturday, he said.

“Protecting our communities is our top priority and our Environment Agency teams are out on the ground checking and operating assets, closing flood gates and closely monitoring river levels and forecasts.”

Are you a passenger who is affected by the incident at Leeds Bradford Airport? Email: haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.

Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also get in touch in the following ways:

If you are reading this page and can’t see the form you can email us at HaveYourSay@bbc.co.uk. Please include your name, age and location with any submission.