An official source at the Safety Department, an affiliate of the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA), in a statement last night to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), said in accordance with a preliminary information, the Air Command and Control was informed on Wednesday evening (January 16, 2008) about the cancellation of the departure of 'L1011-500' plane by its crew. The plane is registered under the category of TL-ADW and is operating under the Jordanian 'Privilege' Jet Airlines, and is leased by the Central African Airline Company. "The plane was destined from King Abdulaziz International Airport to Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso at 07.00 pm local time on a scheduled international Hajj flight No. CAE 1001," the source said. "The cancellation was due to a defect in the front wheel tires of the plane. The crew stopped the plane on 'Runway 34-Left'. The airport declared a state of emergency", the source added. "The Fire and Rescue Unit responded to the situation. The investigation disclosed that the front wheel tires were damaged resulting in breakage of the front wheel system. In the absence of the possibility of moving the plane to the Parking Area, passengers were evacuated through the normal exists and moved to the Hajj Terminal. The state of emergency was lifted and the runway was closed. The work is in progress to repair the wheels so that the runway will be cleared and reopened," the source said. "As many as 233 passengers were on-board in addition to a 15-member plane crew. There were no injuries," the source added.
