An American Airlines plane caught fire at Denver International Airport in the United States after its landing gear malfunctioned, prompting panicked passengers to flee down emergency slides. The incident occurred at 2:45 p.m. local time on Saturday.
The plane was scheduled to depart from Denver to Miami. The plane's number was Flight 3023, a Boeing 737 Max 8 model. It was carrying a total of 173 passengers and 6 crew members, all of whom were safely disembarked. Firefighters responded to the scene and extinguished the fire as soon as fire and smoke were detected.
Five passengers were initially assessed during the incident, but none were taken to hospital. Only one was taken to hospital after receiving first aid at the gate, but his injuries were minor.
American Airlines said the plane was taken out of service after experiencing mechanical problems and was being rerouted to an alternative flight. The company apologized to passengers for the situation and praised the professionalism of the flight crew.
The incident is currently under investigation by the US Federal Aviation Administration. Meanwhile, the ground stop was issued for all flights arriving at Denver Airport until 3 pm local time after the incident. About 90 flights were delayed, but the airport later resumed normal operations.