US Plane Suddenly Catches Fire in Scary Incident, Video Trends

• An American Airlines flight was evacuated at Denver International Airport on Saturday, July 26, after it suffered "a mechanical issue"
• Trending social media footage seen by Legit.ng showed the moment passengers used emergency slides to escape, with flames seen below the plane
• One individual was taken to the hospital following the incident, according to Denver International Airport

Legit.ng journalist, Ridwan Adeola Yusuf, has over 9 years of experience covering global affairs.

Denver, USA - Passengers of American Airlines, one of the world’s busiest carriers, were forced to evacuate a plane at Denver International Airport after the landing gear caught fire shortly before takeoff.

As reported by the BBC, on Saturday, July 26, American Airlines Flight 3023 was set to depart for Miami International Airport when it encountered “a mechanical issue involving an aircraft tyre and flames”.

American Airlines jet evacuated, video trends

CBS News also noted the development.

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There were 173 passengers and six crew members on board the aircraft when the incident occurred at around 2:45 p.m. local time.

One passenger was transported to the hospital with a minor injury, American Airlines confirmed.

A passenger stated that the incident occurred just before the plane took off. The pilots immediately slowed the plane down to a halt as passengers quickly “noticed smoke coming up from the aircraft.”

The source narrated:

"During the speed-up, when the plane almost took off, we heard a loud boom, and I said, 'That's not good'.

"It was an unpleasant moment, but we were lucky that we didn't get up in the air yet, but I would imagine that it happened five to 10 seconds before we were airborne."

American Airlines reacts

Reacting to the incident, American Airlines disclosed that everyone onboard "deplaned safely".

It said in a statement:

“American Airlines flight 3023 experienced a mechanical issue on takeoff roll at Denver International Airport (DEN).

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"All customers and crew deplaned safely, and the aircraft was taken out of service to be inspected by our maintenance team.”

“The combination of blown tires and the deceleration of the aircraft during braking resulted in a minor isolated brake fire that was quickly extinguished by the Denver Fire Department."

Video of troubled American Airlines trends

In footage of the incident trending on social media platforms, passengers are seen evacuating the smoking plane by descending an inflatable slide before running from the aircraft.

Some passengers are holding children as they go down the slide.

The video can be viewed below:

Legit.ng understands that the Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the incident.

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Safety threats in Abuja flight operations

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that Lufthansa Airlines offloaded 45 passengers and all the luggage of about 200 passengers fully booked for the Abuja-Frankfurt flight.

The German carrier took this decision to reduce the weight of the aircraft so that it could take off from a shorter length of the runway.

This was because a big hole developed at one end of the 3,610 meters (20 kilometer) runway, which forced the management of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to cordon off that part, thus limiting aircraft from building thrust through the normal runway distance.

Proofreading by James Ojo, copy editor at Legit.ng.

Source: Legit.ng