The accident caused no casualties but caused the temporary closure of the airport, authorities said. “The two people (who were on board) are in good health,” Costa Rican fire chief Hector Chaves told reporters.
The two crew members, of Guatemalan nationality, were transported as a precaution to a hospital for examination, said Guido Vasquez, a Red Cross first aider.
The plane, a Boeing-757 of the German group DHL, had taken off for 25 minutes from San José airport bound for Guatemala when the pilot reported a problem with the hydraulic system and asked to turn back, according to Julian Belliard, director of operations and security of the public company Aeris which manages the airport.
Loss of the emergency landing shortly before 4:30 p.m. GMT (6:30 p.m. HB), the aircraft skidded, left the runway and broke in two.
The accident caused “the total paralysis of operations at Juan Santamaria airport (in San José), both for arrivals and for departures” for several hours, said Mr. Belliard.