Garuda passenger plane with 130 on board skids off runway in Indonesia

An Indonesian passenger plane carrying 130 people has skidded off the runway after landing at Yogyakarta airport in heavy rain, the latest mishap to hit the country’s aviation sector.

No one was hurt after the Boeing 737-800 operated by Indonesian flag carrier Garuda came off the runway at the airport early on Thursday as it arrived from Jakarta.

Adisutjipto international airport, in central Java, was closed following the incident, with authorities saying it would remain shut until Thursday afternoon to allow the plane to be removed from the area.

Services to and from Yogyakarta were axed, with flights supposed to arrive at the busy airport diverted to the nearby city of Solo.

The flight



was carrying 123 passengers and seven crew, Garuda spokesman Benny Butarbutar said in a statement.

Transport ministry spokesman Agoes Subagio said the accident happened due to heavy rain.

The Indonesian archipelago relies heavily on air transport to connect its thousands of islands but has suffered a string of deadly plane crashes in recent years.

Among the worst disasters were the military plane crash in Sumatra killing 141 people in July 2015 and the AirAsia crash in December 2014 which left 162 dead.

Yogyakarta airport has faced criticism for its poor safety record. In 2007, 21 people were killed when a Garuda plane overran the runway and burst into flames while landing there.