Korean Air Lines flight overruns runway at the Philippines' Mactan-Cebu International Airport

A Korean Air Lines' flight lands on a grass field 250 meters (820 feet) away from the runway at Mactan-Cebu International Airport at 11:07 p.m. on Oct. 23. [AFP/YONHAP]

A Korean Air Lines flight overran the runway while trying to land at Mactan-Cebu International Airport in the Philippines, and authorities are looking into possible problems in aircraft brakes or bad runway conditions as the cause of the accident.

Korean Air Lines’ A330-300 made two failed attempts to land on the runway at Mactan-Cebu International Airport before it ended up overrunning the runway on its third attempt at 11:07 p.m. on Oct. 23. Failing to slow down, the aircraft skid to a stop in a grass field 250 meters (820 feet) past the end of the runway.

There were 162 passengers on board, along with 11 cabin crew, and no one was injured. Forty-nine passengers have been escorted to local hotels nearby, provided by the airline as of Monday, and the remaining 113 went to hotels they had already booked.

The plane's front underbelly, nose and landing gear was damaged from the overrun.

The Philippine authorities and Korea’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport are investigating any possible causes of the accident. The ministry said it is looking into various reasons, including any problems in the aircraft’s brakes, runway conditions or bad weather.

The airport's runway has been closed since the overrun. Although the runway was originally scheduled to reopen around 2 p.m., the reopening time has been pushed back as the airport hasn’t been able to get a crane to lift the plane, still in the field, to a separate area.

A team of some 40 Korean Air Lines employees — including Lee Soo-keun, Korean Air Lines chief safety and operating officer, and various experts in aircraft maintenance and medical care — will fly to Cebu on the carrier's B777-300ER flight when the runway reopens. Two supervisors from the Land Ministry and three other investigators will also board the flight.

Four Korean Air Lines employees were dispatched to the site via a flight landing at the country's Bohol-Panglao International Airport on Monday morning to provide any additional help, and another three employees have also been sent from the airline's Manila office.

Some 100 passengers who were scheduled to fly to Incheon International Airport from Korean Air Lines' overshot aircraft are currently waiting at the airport.

Another 177 passengers who booked Jeju Air’s Cebu-Incheon flight and 156 who booked Jin Air’s Cebu-Incheon flight are also waiting due to flight delays. An Air Busan flight that was scheduled to fly from Busan to Cebu at 8 a.m. Monday was canceled.

BY LEE TAE-HEE [lee.taehee2@joongang.co.kr]