Weather conditions are being blamed for the hard landing of an Aer Lingus plane at Belfast City Airport on Sunday.
The nose wheel on the twin-engine turboprop short haul craft is believed to have collapsed on landing, leading to the crash.
Fire crews were seen at the scene of the incident, which happened at around 4pm. No serious injuries were reported.
“At around 16:00 today, Sunday 22 December, an Aer Lingus regional flight, operated by Emerald Airlines, had an incident on landing at Belfast City Airport,” an airport spokesperson said.
“This was a positioning fight with no passengers but 4 crew members onboard. The airport’s emergency procedures were enacted.
“The runway is currently closed and will be for the rest of the day. Passengers are asked to contact their airline.”
An Emerald Airlines said the flight, EA701P, with no passengers on board, flying from Edinburgh to Belfast City Airport “experienced a hard landing upon arriving into Belfast City Airport due to adverse weather conditions”.
Airside NI, a group of airline watchers, reported that the craft “collapsed after suffering a terribly hard landing”.
Belfast International Airport said it has taken four diverted flights from the city.
“As we already had a heavier schedule than usual, we are now, with these additional flights, close to capacity so we are limited in how many more redirected flights we can take this evening, however we will continue to support where possible,” a spokesperson said.
“Our website will carry the most up to date information for arrivals and departures and if anyone has any queries they should be directed to the airlines.
“Given the circumstances, our teams on the ground are working to help these additional flights as quickly as possible. We would ask for passengers' patience as we support each additional flight.”
