ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — A Delta Air Lines airplane caught fire on Monday before it was supposed to take off at a central Florida airpor
t, forcing the evacuation of passengers, airport officials said.
There were no reports of
any injuries during the fire on the plane at Orlando International Airport, Delta said in a statement.
A recent spate of aviation disasters and close calls in the U.S. has stoked fears about air travel, though flying remains a safe way to travel.
On-the-ground accidents included a plane that crashed and flipped over upon landing in Toronto and a Japan Airlines plane that clippe
d a parked Delta plane while it was taxiing at the Seattle airport. An American Airlines plane caught fire in Denver last month.
The engine fire broke out late Monday morning on Delta Air Lines Flight 1213 w
hile the plane was at the ramp before a scheduled departure from Orlando to Atlanta, airport officials said on social media.
The passengers were evacuated, and the airport’s rescue and firefightin
g team responded, the airport’s statement said.
The Airbus A330 aircraft had 282 customers, 10 flight attendants and two pilots, according to Delta.
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“Delta flight crews followed procedures to evacuate the passenger cabin when
flames in the tailpipe of one of the aircraft’s two engines were observed,” Delta said in a statement.
Maintenance teams will examine the aircraft in an effort to determine the cause of the fire, Delta said.
Delta in February was fined $16,550 by the U.S. Occupational Saf
ety and Health Administration, after an airliner tire exploded in a maintenance shop, killing two workers and injuring a third. The cit
ation has been paid in full, according to OSHA, the Atlanta Journal-Contitution and other news reports. The family of one of the dece
ased workers also has filed a lawsuit against the airline.