An American Airlines plane carrying 53 people skidded off the Rochester runway

News

by Catherine Dunleavy

An American Airlines plane skidded off the runway and onto the grass shortly after landing in snowy weather Thursday at Frederick Douglass Greater Rochester International Airport in New York.

Officials with the Federal Aviation Administration and American Airlines said the Embraer E145 plane – carrying 53 passengers – had just landed and was en route to the terminal around 4 p.m. when it skidded.

A US spokesman said the frightening incident was caused by “snowy airport conditions” caused by light snow storms across the region.

A video circulated on social media showed emergency service crews responding to the plane, with several firefighters escorting passengers to the snow-covered field.

Fortunately, none of the 50 passengers and three crew members were injured.

“Safety is our top priority, and we apologize to our customers for their experience. All those on board got out safely and were taken to the terminal by bus,” the American spokesman said.

The plane had just made a 300-mile flight from Philadelphia International Airport, although the plane landed about an hour behind schedule, Flightaware data shows.

It was snowing lightly in Rochester at the time of the slide.

The region is expecting another round of heavy snowfall, with significant snowfalls of 2 to 4 inches per hour expected in nearby Buffalo over the weekend.

The aircraft was towed from the taxiway and taken out of service for a full inspection.

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the accident.