A passenger jet was left teetering on a cliff edge after skidding off the runway at an airport in northern Turkey.

Dramatic images show the white aircraft dangling precariously on the steep, muddy cliff face against the backdrop of the clear waters of the Black Sea.

Image: The aircraft crashed off the runway after landing in the Turkish province of Trabzon

"We tilted to the side, the front was down while the plane's rear was up. There was panic; people shouting, screaming," one of the passengers, Fatma Gordu, told state-run news agency Anadolu.

All 162 passengers and crew, who were on board the aircraft when it overshot the runway on Sunday, were evacuated safely by emergency services. No one was hurt.

Image: All passengers and crew were evacuated safely

The Pegasus Airline's Boeing 737 was flying from the Turkish capital Ankara to Trabzon Airport.


It is not yet known what caused the plane to skid off on to the cliff face.

Image: The plane was stuck in mud on the cliff face

The local governor, Yucel Yavuz, said an investigation had been launched into the incident - which Pegasus Airlines described in a statement as a "runway excursion".

The airport, situated in the Turkish province of the same name, was closed for several hours afterwards but has since reopened.

Image: An investigation has been launched into the incident

Social media users reacted to the footage of the crash, with some saying it was "incredible it stopped where it did".

"How lucky are those passengers!" wrote one person on Twitter.