A passenger plane caught fire before takeoff at Gimhae International Airport in South Korea late Tuesday, but fortunately, all 176 individuals on board were safely evacuated. The incident involved an Airbus A321 aircraft operated by Air Busan, a South Korean airline, which was preparing to depart for Hong Kong when its rear parts ignited.
According to the Transport Ministry, the plane's 169 passengers, six crew members, and one engineer were successfully evacuated using an escape slide. Regrettably, three individuals sustained minor injuries during the evacuation process. The National Fire Agency managed to completely extinguish the fire by 11:31 p.m., approximately one hour after deploying firefighters and fire trucks to the scene.
At present, the cause of the fire remains unknown as investigations are ongoing. This incident occurred just a month after a tragic plane crash at Muan International Airport in southern South Korea, where a Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 crashed, resulting in the loss of all but two of the 181 individuals on board. The crash, which occurred on December 29, was attributed to the plane skidding off the runway due to landing gear failure, subsequently colliding with a concrete structure and catching fire.
The initial report on the crash indicated evidence of bird strikes in the plane's engines, although authorities have yet to determine the definitive cause of the accident. This devastating event stands as one of the deadliest disasters in South Korea's aviation history, with the victims primarily being South Korean nationals, along with two Thai individuals.
