A Spirit Airlines plane briefly caught on fire after landing at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport Sunday morning, The Atlanta Journal-Constitutionreports.
Spirit spokesperson Erik Hofmeyer said one of the brakes on the aircraft, arriving from Tampa, got overheated while on the tarmac, causing the tires to go up in flames. After first responders managed to quell the fire, the plane was towed to a nearby gate where passengers were able to safely disembark. “Thank you to the Atlanta first responders for immediately meeting the aircraft,” Hofmeyer said. “The plane will be temporarily removed from service for maintenance.”
Hartsfield–Jackson also addressed the situation via Twitter, and credited Atlanta Fire & Rescue for jumping into action.
Scottie Nelms, a passenger aboard Spirit Airlines Flight 383, told FOX 5 Atlanta that he and everyone else aboard the plane started freaking out once they noticed flames emerging from what appeared to be the engine. “Once we landed it made a weird noise from the left side of the plane. Nobody knew what it was until we stopped completely in the middle of the landing strip,” Nelms recalled. “We saw a flame coming from the engine and people and myself started freaking out.”
Flight attendants aboard the flight told passengers to remain in their seats unless told otherwise.
Nelms told WFLA News Channel 8 that he will not be flying again anytime soon.
