A day after an Air Niugini flight crashed into the sea in Micronesia's Weno, the national carrier of Papua New Guinea has confirmed that one male flyer is missing while six have been hospitalised.
In an official statement, the airline reassured that all those hospitalised are in a stable condition. It also informed that the carrier has launched a search operation to locate the missing flyer.
"As of 12:30 pm today, we are unable to account for a single male passenger and are working with the local authorities, hospitals and investigators to locate this passenger who was aboard our flight PX 073," read a statement released by Air Niugini on their website on Saturday.
They further stated, "Locating him (the missing passenger), as well as providing ongoing support to the other passengers, crew and families are and will remain our primary concern".
The airline also stated that it is "in the process of transferring" the crew and remaining passengers in a special flight to Port Moresby, the capital of Papua New Guinea.
The carrier's initial statement had suggested that all on board miraculously escaped with minor injuries after the pilot of the Boeing 737 aircraft "landed short of the runway" and crashed into the sea in Micronesia on Friday.
