Thrust reverser 'not working' on Florida plane that crashed in river

A feature that helps aircraft slow down on landing was broken on a Boeing 737 that skidded into a river in Florida, a top transportation safety official said Sunday.

The plane carrying 143 people slid off the runway after a hard landing Saturday at a naval air station in Jacksonville during a lightning storm.

Police said 21 people were taken to hospital with minor injuries but no fatalities or critical injuries were reported.

Transport safety officials said one of the thrust reversers which are supposed to help to slow the aircraft down was not working.

"The aircraft had been in maintenance and the maintenance log noted that the left-hand thrust reverser was inoperative," Bruce Landsberg, vice chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, told reporters Sunday.

He said investigators would be examining the maintenance of the aircraft in the weeks prior to the accident "and the condition of the thrust reversers will obviously be of interest."