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Smoke forces plane evacuation in Turkey

248 days ago

(AP:ANKARA, Turkey) Passengers, some in a panic, were evacuated from a plane at Turkey's Antalya airport early Sunday after crew members reported smoke inside the cockpit, airline officials and state media said. Three passengers were slightly injured during the evacuation, while 25 were affected by the smoke.

The Trondheim, Norway-bound Boeing 737-800 plane, with 189 passengers and seven crew members on board, was readying for take-off around 4 a.m. local time (0100 GMT) when the crew detected the smoke and the captain ordered the evacuation, according to a statement from the Antalya-based Corendon Airlines.

Three passengers sustained slight hand and leg injuries during the evacuation, while another 25 who were affected by smoke that spread from the cockpit were under observation in a hospital, company spokesman Can Daglioglu told The Associated Press.

The state-run Anadolu news agency reported panic among passengers during the evacuation. Most of the passengers were flown to Trondheim aboard another Corendon Airlines-operated plane, but four chose to stay in Antalya, Daglioglu said.

It was not known what caused the smoke, Corendon said, adding that Boeing technicians would inspect the plane, which has been withdrawn from service.

The Antalya airport serves several resorts along Turkey's Mediterranean coast that are popular with tourists from northern Europe and Russia.

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