Terrifying footage shows flames coming from a FedEx plane that was taking off at Newark Airport in the United States.
The aircraft was forced to return to the runway with the fire raging in one of the engines. “Engine failure/fire FedEx 3609 at Newark on takeoff, returned to land,” read a post on social media.
Bystanders are reported to have heard “explosions” at the major American airport that serves New York City, they described how the aircraft took off with the flames then visible and it was able to safely return to the airport. After taking off at 7:58am the plane was forced to U-turn back to Newark for an emergency landing at 8:07am.
Social media clips show the plane’s right engine on fire while it was in the air and still large flames were coming from it on the ground. It has been reported that the fire was started by birds entering the engine. Emergency were also filmed rushing to the plane on the tarmac where the fire was put out successfully.
“FedEx #FDX3609,Boeing 767, suffered a bird strike leading to right engine failure this morning at Newark Airport. The pilots declared an emergency and safely landed back just 9 minutes after takeoff. Kudos to the crew for their exceptional handling of a tough situation,” read one post.
It follows a United airlines flight which was forced to make an emergency landing at Newark airport in New Jersey last Tuesday. Flight 1544 took off from Newark airport just before 6am and was en route to the Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas. But the Boeing 757 turned around after an hour in the air and returned to Newark, with the pilots citing an unspecified mechanical problem, according to Port Authority officials.
The plane was carrying 176 passengers and six crew members. “United flight 1544 to Las Vegas returned to Newark Liberty International Airport to address a possible mechanical issue,” the airline said in a statement. “The flight landed safely, and all passengers deplaned normally at the gate. We have arranged for a different aircraft to take our customers to Las Vegas this morning.”
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