This is the moment a huge hole is spotted in the fuselage of an Air China jumbo jet following a suspected fire in one of its cargo holds.
The Tokyo-bound flight was preparing to board passengers when thick plumes of smoke were seen rising from the front of the plane, a statement by the Chinese flag carrier said.
The incident took place at Beijing Capital International Airport in the Chinese capital at roughly 4pm local time today (27th August).
Video Credit: AsiaWire
According to reports, the Airbus A330 destined for Haneda Airport in the Japanese capital had already been linked by a jet bridge to Terminal 3 when the fire scare occurred.
Air China said it evacuated all passengers before the fire service was sent in to inspect the front cargo hold, where a blaze is thought to have started.
A Beijing airport media statement claimed there were “no flames” inside the plane when firefighters arrive, despite video appearing to show a large hole having been burned into the top of the aircraft’s fuselage.
Flight CA 183, which was swiftly cancelled, had no passengers onboard at the time of the incident, the airport said.
The fire scare is not thought to have caused any further delays to other flights.
An investigation into the incident is ongoing. It is unclear if a replacement flight has been organised for the stranded passengers.
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Story By: John Feng, Sub-Editor: Alex Cope, Agency: Asia Wire Report
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