Passengers on an American Airlines flight were forced to flee the aircraft via the wing after an engine burst into flames.
The American Airlines flight 1006 was travelling from Colorado Springs to Dallas Fort Worth when the crew suddenly began to feel “engine vibrations”, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said.
The Boeing 737-800 was forced to divert to Denver, Colorado, where all 172 passengers and six crew members made it safely off the aircraft.
Footage shows the crew and travelers exiting the plane via one of its wings, before using emergency inflatable slides to reach the ground.
The crew and passengers exited the plane via one of its wings
X – @flynnstone
The Boeing 737-800 was forced to divert to Denver, Colorado, where all 172 passengers and six crew members made it safely off the aircraft
REUTERS
Clouds of smoke engulfed the passengers, as they made their way away from the aircraft.
There were no reports of serious injuries, although the airport later confirmed 12 people were taken to hospital for minor injuries.
The FAA said it would be launching a probe into the cause of the fire, which began after the aircraft landed at Denver.
The fire was quickly doused and it did not lead to delays for other flights, airport spokesman Michael Konopasek said.
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Clouds of smoke engulfed the passengers, as they make their way away from the aircraft
The fire was quickly doused and it did not lead to delays for other flights
“We thank our crew members, DEN [the airport] team and first responders for their quick and decisive action with the safety of everyone on board and on the ground as the priority,” American Airlines said.
According to flight tracking website FlightRadar24, the plane is 13 years old.
Aaron Clark, a passenger at the terminal waiting for his own flight, witnessed the incident.
He said: “We were near (gate) B44, just landed from Pittsburgh. We stopped by the windows for a second and saw a flash of sudden fire, followed by a ton of smoke.
The FAA said it would be launching a probe into the cause of the fire, which began after the aircraft landed at Denver
REUTERS
“The fire was very brief and looked like it was extinguished pretty quickly by ground crews.
“The smoke continued for a while and that’s when we saw people starting to exit from the rear slides.”
It is the latest in a series of high-profile incidents in America which have raised concerns about aviation safety.
Last month, a Delta Air Lines jet flipped upside down upon landing at Canada’s Toronto Pearson Airport, leaving 18 people injured.
And in January, a passenger plane hit a military helicopter in mid-air near Washington DC’s Ronald Reagan airport, leaving all 67 people onboard both aircrafts dead.