Tail of Asiana plane hit runway: South Korea ministry

Seoul: The tail of an Asiana Airlines Boeing 777 hit the runway before it crashed at San Francisco International Airport, South Korea`s transportation ministry said Sunday.

"The tail of the Asiana flight hit the runway and the aircraft veered to the left out of the runway," the ministry said in a statement, adding that it was sending a four-member team to inspect the site of the accident.

Two people were killed and 181 injured when Flight 214 crashed and burst into flames. The plane had 307 people -- 291 passengers and 16 crew -- on board when it left Seoul.

It was the first fatal crash involving an Asiana passenger plane since June 1993, when an Asiana Boeing 737 crashed into a mountain in South Korea, killing 68.
AFP