ISTANBUL, May 8 (Reuters) - A FedEx Airlines Boeing

cargo plane landed at Istanbul Airport on Wednesday

without the front landing gear deployed and managed to stay on

the runway, Turkey's transport ministry said, adding that there

were no casualties.

The Boeing 767 aircraft, flying from Paris Charles de Gaulle

Airport, informed the traffic control tower at Istanbul Airport

that its landing gear failed to open and it landed with guidance

from the tower, the ministry said in its statement.

Airport rescue and fire fighting teams made necessary

preparations on the runway before landing, and no one was

injured, the ministry also said, without giving a reason for the

failure.

Video footage obtained from Reuters showed sparks flying and

smoke billowing as the front end of the plane scraped along the

runway before being doused with firefighting foam.

The runway where the cargo plane landed has been temporarily

closed to air traffic, but traffic on the other runways at the

airport was continuing without any interruption, the airport

operator IGA said.