South Korean Airport Authorities reported that after a jet caught fire at prior to takeoff, they swung into action and all 176 passengers were safely evacuated. South Korean Plane Catches Fire, No Casualty
The Transport Ministry reported that the rear sections of the Airbus aircraft, which was flown by the South Korean airline Air Busan, caught fire at Gimhae International Airport in the southeast as it was ready to depart for Hong Kong.
The ministry reported that an escape slide was used to remove the 169 passengers, six crew members, and one engineer from the aircraft. Three individuals were slightly hurt during the evacuation, according to a press release from the National Fire Agency.
At approximately 11.31 p.m. local time (2.31 p.m. GMT), approximately an hour after sending firefighters and fire vehicles to the location, the fire department reported that the fire was totally extinguished.
It was not immediately clear what caused the fire. The aircraft is an A321 type, according to the Transport Ministry.
Tuesday’s event occurred one month after all but two of the 181 people on board a Jeju Air passenger plane perished in a crash at Muan International Airport in southern South Korea.
It was among the deadliest aircraft mishaps in South Korea’s history. On December 29, the Boeing 737-800 crashed into a concrete building and caught fire when its landing gear failed to deploy, causing it to slip off the airport’s runway. With the exception of two Thai nationals, all of the casualties were South Koreans, and the plane was returning from Bangkok.
Authorities have verified evidence of bird attacks in the plane’s engines, according to the initial report on the disaster, which was made public on Monday. However, the cause of the tragedy has not yet been established.
