Plane skids off runway in Indonesia; 5 injured

Jakarta: An Adam Air jetliner carrying 169 passengers skidded off the runway in heavy rain on the island of Batam on Monday, injuring five people.

The Boeing 737-400 operated by one of Indonesia's budget carriers overshot the runway, and severely damaging the plane. It had flown from the capital, Jakarta.

Five passengers were hospitalized, with head and neck injuries.

Indonesia has witnessed a string of deadly air disasters in recent times, at the same time as the industry here is undergoing a period of liberalization.

Adam Air jetliners have experienced a number of incidents, most of them non-fatal.

In 2007, an Adam Air place plunged into the sea of Sulawesi island, with all 102 passengers on board presumed dead.