This is the moment terrified passengers were forced to jump out of a plane’s emergency exit after flames began shooting from the Boeing plane’s engine moments before take-off.
The Boeing 737-500 plane, bound for the city of Wamena, caught fire on Tuesday at Sentani Airport in Jayapura, Papua province, Indonesia, forcing its 121 passengers to evacuate.
Terrifying footage shows smoke billowing from the plane’s engine, while another clip captured the moment petrified passengers had to stand on the plane’s wing as they waited their turn to get off.
People on board the plane were also seen sliding down an inflatable emergency slide, while screams and sirens sounded in the background.
A passenger reportedly noticed the fire and panicked, prompting him to open the emergency door while shouting at other travelers.
Passengers were forced to jump out of a plane’s emergency exit after flames began shooting from the Boeing plane’s engine moments before take-off.
The Boeing 737-500 plane, bound for the city of Wamena, caught fire on Tuesday at Sentani Airport in Jayapura, Papua province, Indonesia.
The incident caused the cancellation of the flight, as well as other delays.
Dozens of frightened airmen followed suit, pushing and shoving their way toward the exit.
The flight was reportedly canceled and two others were delayed due to the fire.
Airport security chief Iptu Wajedi said: “When the exhaust gases first arrive, sometimes a fire breaks out.
‘Seeing this, the passengers were shocked and tried to escape from the fire.
“So everyone scattered from the plane in fear.
The image shows people escaping from a plane via an emergency slide after a passenger saw smoke coming from the plane’s engine.
“All passengers were able to get off the plane and are now in the waiting room.”
He added: “We are trying to find the identity of the passenger who was the first to say that the plane was on fire.”
Airport spokesperson Surya Eka said: “The Trigana Air plane with flight code IL237, a Boeing 737-500 from Sentani Airport in Jayapura to Wamena, was canceled because a passenger suddenly opened the emergency door when he saw fire. coming out of the plane’s engine.
He said “four passengers were injured” due to the pushing and shoving to get off the plane.
The injured travelers were treated at the Health Quarantine Center.
Eka added: “The incident caused the plane, which was supposed to carry 121 passengers to Wamena, to not take off.”
He said they are currently waiting for the National Transportation Safety Committee to conduct an investigation into the cause of the fire.
It comes after a tire on a Boeing 737 plane exploded as its pilots prepared to take off from Tampa International Airport in July.
Video of the takeoff attempt shows how a layer of gray smoke filled the air after the tire sparked, leaving fragments of rubber thrown across the runway.
There were 174 passengers and six crew members aboard the Phoenix-bound flight, an American Airlines spokesman said. No one was injured in the incident.
The smoking engine is just the latest in a series of alarming problems plaguing the troubled Boeing plane.
