An airline in Somalia has praised one of its pilots after he crash-landed his passenger plane on the shoreline near Mogadishu’s international airport on Tuesday morning, with all 55 people on board surviving.

The aircraft, a Fokker 50 operated by Starsky Aviation, had taken off from Mogadishu en route to Puntland when the crew reported a technical fault shortly after departure, according to Somalia’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). The pilot requested to return to the capital.

The plane touched down but failed to stop on the runway, overshooting the tarmac before coming to rest in shallow water along the Indian Ocean shoreline, CAA director Ahmed Macalin Hassan said. The exact cause of the technical issue has not yet been confirmed.

Footage shared on X showed passengers exiting the aircraft and walking away from the wreckage. No serious injuries were reported among the 50 passengers and five crew members.

The African Union’s mission in Somalia said UN and AU troops were “swiftly deployed” to assist with rescue efforts. Somalia’s transport minister was also present at the scene, according to a post on X.

Starsky Aviation credited the pilot’s actions for the outcome.

“We are relieved to confirm that all passengers and crew are safe. Investigations are under way to establish what caused the technical issue that led to the emergency landing,” Starsky spokesman Hassan Mohamed Aden said.

“The pilot’s swift and calm decision-making played a decisive role in ensuring the safety of everyone on board, and we commend him for how he handled the situation,” he added.