Myanmar National Airlines plane attacked by gunfire; one passenger injured

A passenger onboard a Myanmar National Airlines domestic flight suffered facial injuries when a bullet pierced the aircraft fuselage.

The aircraft, an ATR-72, was flying at an altitude of 3,500 feet and on final approach to Loikaw Airport (LIW) when the fuselage was struck by three shots from the ground.

State television channel MRTV reported that Myanmar’s military government has accused rebel forces in the eastern state of Kayah of firing the bullets.

“I want to say that this kind of attack on the passenger plane is a war crime,” Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, a spokesperson for Myanmar’s ruling military council told MRTV. “People and organizations who want peace need to condemn this issue all round.”

Myanmar National Airlines announced that all flights to Loikaw had been canceled indefinitely.

The injured passenger was taken to a local hospital for treatment.

Kayah state, where Loikaw is the capital, has experienced intense conflict between the military and local resistance groups since the army seized power in 2021, overthrowing the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi.