CHICAGO - The engine of an American Airlines Group Inc jet caught fire seconds from takeoff at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport on Friday, prompting the crew to abort its departure and evacuate passengers via emergency chutes, authorities said.
No serious injuries were reported in the incident, which occurred hours before an unrelated mishap in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where the landing gear of a FedEx Corp cargo plane collapsed on touchdown, sparking a fire that was quickly extinguished.
The company later said the FedEx pilots were safe.
American Airlines Flight 383, a Boeing Co 767 bound for Miami with 161 passengers and a crew of nine, was headed down an O'Hare runway at about 2.30pm CDT (2.30am Sunday Bangkok time) when the right-side engine of the twin-engine jet burst into flames, authorities said.
Footage from Chicago's ABC News affiliate station, WLS-TV, showed the idled plane on the ground with flames and large clouds of black smoke billowing from its right side and emergency slides deployed on the left side. Passengers milled about watching the blaze as fire trucks pumped water on the flames.