Watch: Boeing makes emergency landing after engine fire
A Boeing passenger plane was forced to make an emergency landing in Indonesia after an engine caught fire during take-off.
Streaks of flame were spotted shooting out the back of the 747-400 aircraft as it lifted off the runway with 468 passengers onboard.
The flight, operated by Garuda Indonesia, was departing the city of Makassar for Medina in Saudi Arabia, where many on the flight intended to make the annual Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca.
The incident forced the pilots to circle back immediately after taking off, safely completing the emergency landing 90 minutes later, with all passengers and crew evacuated safely.
The fire is the latest incident involving an aircraft made by Boeing, which is under scrutiny for the safety and quality of its planes.
Last week, scores of passengers were forced to flee a burning Boeing plane after it aborted take-off and veered off the runway in Senegal.
Footage of the incident at Dakar’s Blaise Diagne airport showed passengers screaming as they fled flames, leaving 16 people injured.
The accidents follow allegations against the manufacturer by a whistleblower, Santiago Paredes, who claimed one of Boeing’s largest suppliers regularly allowed aircraft fuselages to leave its factory with up to 200 defects.
Mr Paredes told the BBC he often found defects on parts being prepared for shipping to Boeing.
Boeing declined to comment to the BBC on Mr Paredes’s claims.
There are wider fears that the safety crisis at Boeing may set off a wave of flight cancellations this summer as airlines scramble to secure enough planes.
Avia Solutions, the world’s largest aircraft leasing company, said European airlines were likely to slim down their schedules in the coming months after a slowdown of deliveries in the sector.
Boeing has not yet issued a statement regarding the incident in Indonesia.
