Philippine Airlines Flight 143 was a flight that took place on March 22, 1998. The flight was a very special one because it encountered a big problem while in the air. It was traveling from Manila, which is the capital city of the Philippines, to Tokyo in Japan.
Now, when we fly in an airplane, there are certain things that make it work and keep it in the air. One of the most important things is the fuel. Just like how cars need gasoline to move, airplanes need fuel too. So before a flight, the airplane is filled up with fuel to make sure it has enough to reach the destination.
But on Flight 143, there was a mistake. The people who filled up the airplane with fuel made a big error in their calculations. They put in much less fuel than the airplane needed for the long journey. It's like if you were going on a long car trip and your parents only put a little bit of gas in the car.
So everything was going well for the first part of the flight. The airplane took off from Manila and was flying towards Japan. But as they were nearing halfway into the journey, the engines of the airplane suddenly started to make strange noises. The airplane's pilots noticed that the engines were losing power and they were not able to get the airplane to go as fast as it should.
The pilots quickly realized that the airplane was running out of fuel! Remember the mistake the people made when they filled it up? This is when it became a big problem. The pilots had to make some quick decisions to save the airplane and the people on board.
They first tried to find an airport nearby where they could land the airplane, but it was too far and they couldn't make it in time. So they had to look for an alternative solution. The pilots spotted an airport called Gimhae in South Korea. They made a turn and headed towards this airport.
However, there was another problem. The airplane was running out of power, so the pilots had to find a way to keep it in the air long enough to reach the airport. They made an emergency landing by gliding the airplane. It's like when you play with a toy plane and you turn off the engine and let it glide in the air. They used the same idea to slowly descend towards the airport.
It was a very challenging landing, but the pilots were able to safely bring the airplane down. Everyone on board was okay, although some people had minor injuries. It was a scary experience, but the pilots did an amazing job in handling the situation and saving everyone's lives.
After the incident, investigations were done to find out what went wrong and why the mistake with the fuel happened. Airlines and aviation authorities also took steps to make sure such mistakes don't happen again in the future, to keep everyone safe when they fly.