Incredible Dashcam Video Shows A TransAsia Airways Plane Crashing Into A River In Taiwan
Eight people were killed and several others injured after a TransAsia Airways plane hit a bridge and crashed into a river in Taipei, Taiwan. According to BBC, the aircraft involved in the crash was an ATR 72 model that was carrying a total of 58 passengers in it. Initial reports say that the aircraft had been assigned flight number GE235 and was flying from Taipei to Kinmen in Fujian Province.
What differentiates this crash from others, though, is the fact that the moment of the TransAsia Airways crash was captured in several dashcam videos and images. These incredible videos and photos have been posted on several social media websites and have gone viral as we file this report. The video clip and images show the plane clipping a bridge over the Keelung river in the city and subsequently crash landing into the water.
Later, Taiwan’s Central News Agency (CNA) broadcast footage of the broken up plane submerged in water. Initial reports said that there were 30 people still trapped inside the TransAsia flight. Meanwhile, rescue operations had already commenced and attempts were being made to rescue those trapped inside. Initial reports add that a large number of people on board the aircraft were tourists from mainland China.
According to the Guardian, TransAsia Flight GE235 had just taken off from Taipei’s Songshan Airport – but quickly lost control and crash landed in the river. Earlier, Air Traffic Controllers lost contact with the plane shortly after it took off in the morning, reports say. It is too early to determine the actual cause of the incident. Investigators will look to see if the move to land the plane in the river was a deliberate one by the pilots in order to minimize casualties. It is a common practice to ditch an aircraft in water as a last resort by pilots.
These appear to be some photos of the TransAsia ATR72 crashing over the roadway. via @missxoxo168 h/t @marker7193 pic.twitter.com/7WlvhVFI6j
— Airline Reporter (@AirlineReporter) February 4, 2015
Incidentally, TransAsia Airways was also involved in another air crash in 2014. Back in July 2014, shortly after the infamous MH370 crash, 48 people had died when a TransAsia Airways plane crashed in stormy weather in Taiwan’s Penghu archipelago. The plane lost in that incident too was an ATR series aircraft.
TransAsia Airways operates a fleet of a total of over 20 aircraft and is a well-known carrier in Taiwan – operating since 1951. The company changed its business model to that of a low-cost carrier recently and had also expanded to operate on international routes.
[Images Via Facebook]
