Passenger plane SKIDS off runway amid icy conditions in Moscow

The flight from Riga, Latvia, to the Russian capital skidded off as it landed at Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow this afternoon.

52 passengers were on board the airBaltic flight as it careered along the runway before skidding several metres off to the side.

After landing safely, it missed a taxiway as it was navigating from the runway back to the terminal, causing it to skid several metres off the runway.

The runway was reportedly closed in light of the incident.

A statement by the airline said the incident had occurred “due to heavy winds and slippery taxiway”.

airBaltic confirmed there were no injuries in the incident and said passengers had been taken to the terminal to continue their journey.

The airline said the aircraft appeared to have “no visual defects”, but that it was still determining the facts of the event.

Images show fire engines on the scene as the plan had to be towed out of the way.

It is currently snowing in Moscow, with temperatures of -3 degrees centigrade.

The airline has speculated that the cold weather conditions caused the plane to career off the runway this afternoon.

And similar conditions are set to hit Britain as .

The Met Office has warned Britain is just 36 hours away from a “major snow event” that could grind the country to a halt.

Arctic gales will sweep the country from Friday pushing temperatures to minus 15C (5F) as a volatile ‘snowbomb’ leaves swathes of the country under a foot of the white stuff.

Britons are warned to expect significant disruption over the coming days with blizzards and icy roads threatening widespread chaos.

Heavy snowfall could cut off rural communities, with severe weather likely to knock out power supplies, ground flights and disrupt emergency services.