According to initial reports from Hong Kong authorities, an AirACT cargo 747 veered off the runway while landing, striking a ground vehicle and going over the sea wall. The aircraft came to rest in the water with its tail detached. The accident happened at 19:53 UTC on 19 October (03:53 local time, 20 Oct). According to police, one of the occupants of the ground vehicle died at the scene and the other has since died in hospital. The aircraft’s crew of four was able to evacuate the aircraft.
The AirACT 747 was operating for Emirates SkyCargo as flight EK9788 from Dubai to Hong Kong. The flight touched down on Runway 07L, Hong Kong Airport’s northernmost runway. The aircraft veered left off the runway approximately 5,000 feet from the runway threshold. Based on visual evidence from the scene showing the aircraft along the sea wall, the 747’s tail was severed as it went into the sea.
The 747-400(BDSF) was traveling at 90 knots over the ground as it veered off the runway toward the sea wall. According to granular ADS-B data received by Flightradar24, the aircraft was traveling at 49 knots as it hit the water. The final ADS-B message received from the aircraft showed a speed of 43 knots.
Aircraft information
This flight was operated by airACT 747-400(BDSF) registered TC-ACF. AirACT is a Turkish charter cargo operator formerly known as MyCargo Airlines. The airline has another 747 in its fleet.
Weather information
Relevant METARs from the time of the accident:
VHHH 192000Z 02004G21KT 9999 FEW035 26/20 Q1011 NOSIG
VHHH 191930Z 02018KT 9999 FEW030 27/20 Q1011 NOSIG
Before cargo conversion
Before MSN 25645 was converted for use as a cargo aircraft, it served with ANA, even wearing a special Pokémon-themed livery for a time.
Investigative updates
Late in the evening of 24 October, salvage crews lifted the tail section of the 747 onto a barge, allowing investigators to retrieve the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder. On 26 October, crews lifted the main fuselage out of the water. Salvage operations are expected to be complete by 27 October.
