Passengers from the sinking plane were pulled from the water by locals who came to the rescue in their boats.

A dead passenger has been found in the plane that missed the runway at Chuuk Airport in Micronesia on Friday and ended up in the water.

Previously, the airline Air Niugini stated that all 35 passengers and twelve employees were safe.

"It is with great sadness that I can confirm that the body of a male passenger was found by divers today as they conducted a further search of P2-PXE and the Chuuk lagoon area," a representative for the airline said late on Monday.

The Boeing 737-800 plane was en route from the capital Pohnpei to Port Moresby and was scheduled to make a stopover on the island of Weno.

Nine people were injured in the crash, four of them seriously.

The cause of the accident is being investigated.

Source: TT