A United Airlines flight aborted takeoff after one of its engines caught fire, temporarily halting arrivals at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport amid busy Memorial Day travel.

The incident, reported on Monday, was captured in a dramatic video from the tarmac featuring smoke gushing out from one of the wings, the New York Post reported.

The United Flight 2091 was about to take off from the airport at around 2 PM (local time) when an engine of the Airbus A320 caught fire, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed.

It was expected to fly to Seattle when the engine burst into flames on the taxiway, forcing 148 passengers on board and five crew members to evacuate as the plane was towed back to a gate, the FAA and the airlines have stated in separate statements.

The FAA noted that an engine of the plane caught fire, while the airline only described it as “an issue with the engine.” 

“The fire department and medical personnel met the aircraft out of an abundance of caution,” CNN quoted United officials as saying. They added that no injuries were reported.

This incident forced the FAA to temporarily halt arrivals at the busy Chicago airport, while regular operations started at around 2:45 PM (local time).

A video, reportedly shot by a passenger from inside the plane, shows thick smoke coming out from one of the wings of the plane as it ran on the tarmac.

????BREAKING: United Airlines flight aborts takeoff after an engine catches fire at Chicago O’Hare International Airport.
pic.twitter.com/h1s2o8JDMu

— The Worldview Monitor (@WorldviewFeed) May 28, 2024

The person, who took the video, has claimed that he heard an explosion just when the plane was about to take off.

“I felt the impact on my window. As I looked, the engine was on fire and smoke was coming out,” the passenger told a publication.

The airline, in its statement, further said that the engine issue was “immediately addressed” by first responders, adding that all the passengers onboard were deplaned “normally”.

“We are working to make alternative travel arrangements for customers,” it stated.

New York, United States:

United Airlines briefly halted plane departures Tuesday due to a “systemwide technology issue” before fixing the problem and lifting the ground stop.

The big US carrier told AFP in a 1730 GMT email that it was holding all aircraft at their departure airports, while airborne flights would continue to their destination.

Notices on the Federal Aviation Administration cited an “equipment outage” behind the ground stop order.

But United said around 1800 GMT that the ground stop order had been lifted.

“We have identified a fix for the technology issue and flights have resumed,” United said on X, the former Twitter platform. “We’re working with impacted customers to help them reach their destinations as soon as possible.”

The Federal Aviation Administration said it was asked by United to pause departures nationwide. The first announcement was posted to the FAA page at 1633 GMT.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)