Passengers clapped, then relief turned to horror

THEY cheered and applauded as the plane was landing, relieved to be on the ground after flying through severe weather and a frightening loss of power that plunged the cabin into a dead, dark calm.

But the cheers quickly faded. The Air France jet thudded onto the runway, then skidded off the pavement moments later, bursting into flames. Miraculously everyone escaped.

Speaking after Tuesday night’s crash at Toronto’s Pearson airport, Gwen Dunlop, a Toronto resident who was on the flight on her way home from a summer holiday in France said: “It happened so quickly. It was a little like being in a movie. It was scary, because it did land OK for a few seconds and we actually clapped - we clapped because we were down. We clapped and only seconds later there was a big, big (impact).”