An American Airlines plane carrying 178 people caught fire on the tarmac after making an emergency landing at Denver International Airport Thursday evening, forcing passengers to evacuate by climbing out onto the wing of the plane. There were no reports of serious injuries.
The fire started after the plane, a Boeing 737-800, diverted to the airport due to what the airline said was an engine issue.
The Federal Aviation Administration told CBS News in a statement that American Airlines Flight 1006 had departed from Colorado Springs Airport and was bound for Dallas Fort Worth International Airport when the “crew reported engine vibrations.”
“After landing and while taxiing to the gate an engine caught fire and passengers evacuated the aircraft using the slides,” the FAA said.
In a separate statement, American Airlines said the plane experienced an “engine-related issue” after it had landed and taxied to the gate.
The airline said all of the 172 passengers and six crewmembers aboard deplaned and were “being relocated to the terminal.”
The plane wound up parking at gate C38 at Concource C.
Multiple videos posted on social media show people evacuating from the plane by climbing out onto the wing. Heavy smoke was seen coming from the plane during the chaotic scene.
An airport official told CBS News the fire was extinguished soon afterwards.
A family member of one of the passengers told CBS News Colorado that all of the luggage was taken off the plane and the passengers were being rebooked for a flight that was scheduled to depart Denver for Dallas at 1 a.m. local time Friday.
Robert Sumwalt, a former chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, said the emergency response on Thursday shows “the importance of having well-trained pilots, well-trained flight attendants, well-trained airport rescue and firefighting personnel and air traffic controllers, all working together to ensure a safe outcome when something like this happens.”
