All 169 passengers and seven crew members were evacuated, with three having minor injuries, fire authorities in Busan said.
The fire service was alerted to the fire which began inside the plane just before 10.30pm on Tuesday, it said. South Korea's Yonhap news agency said it began in the plane's tail.
🇰🇷✈� Plane Catches Fire at South Korea's Busan Airport— Live Updates (@LiveupdatesUS) An Airbus A321 carrying 169 passengers and 7 crew members caught fire at Busan Airport.🔥 The blaze reportedly began at the rear of the aircraft.✅ Fortunately, all passengers and crew were safely evacuated using… pic.twitter.com/iEoKfZDzIXJanuary 28, 2025
Later, National Fire Agency said the fire was extinguished at 11.31pm., about one hour after it deployed firefighters and fire trucks at the scene.
The cause wasn't immediately known. The Transport Ministry said the plane is an A321 model.
Footage aired by local broadcaster YTN showed evacuation slides deployed on both sides of the single-aisle plane, with emergency workers tackling smoke and flames from the jet.
Later footage from Yonhap news showed burned out holes along the length of the fuselage roof.
Budget airline Air Busan is part of South Korea's Asiana Airlines, which in December was acquired by Korean Air.
Planemaker Airbus said it was aware of reports about the incident and was liaising with Air Busan.
Air Busan and Asiana did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Korean Air directed inquiries to Air Busan.
Tuesday's incident came a month after a Jeju Air passenger plane crashed at Muan International Airport in southern South Korea, killing all but two of the 181 people on board. It was one of the deadliest disasters in South Korea's aviation history.
with AP
27°C