Plane crashes into Thai airport control tower

An aeroplane crashed into an air traffic control tower today after landing on the popular Thai resort island of Samui, an airport official said.

There were no immediate reports of casualties after the Bangkok Airways domestic flight crashed this morning.

The official said there were at least 70 people aboard when the plane skidded off the runway and hit the tower.

“The plane was damaged,” said the official by telephone from Samui, “The weather was bad, and it was raining when the plane skidded off.”

Thai television Channel 7 said at least half a dozen people remained on the plane. The others were evacuated, and there were no reports of casualties, the channel said.

Bangkok Airways could not be immediately reached.

Samui, located 300 miles south of Bangkok, is a resort island in the Gulf of Thailand popular with foreign tourists.