None of the passengers were seriously injured.

The plane was carrying 35 passengers and 12 crew members.

It has been identified as a Boeing 737-800 aircraft, which belonged to Air Niugini.

The said aircraft was flying from the island of Pohnpei in Micronesia to Port Moresby, the capital of Papua New Guinea, stopping at Micronesia's Weno island on the way, reported the BBC.

An investigation to determine the reason for the accident will be initiated by officials.

Chuuk airport manager Jimmy Emilio was quoted by the BBC as saying: "The plane crashed in the lagoon, about 160 yards away from the runway."

"Right now we don't really know what happened. Investigations will start earliest tomorrow, but [for now], operations are starting again as usual in the airport," he said, adding that minor injuries were reported.

Image: twitter.com/richard680news