Huge Fire Breaks Out on US-Bound Flight from Hong Kong

A fire broke out on a parked aircraft scheduled for an international flight from Hong Kong International Airport yesterday evening.

The flames broke out just as cargo was being loaded onto an American Airlines Boeing 777 passenger jet bound for Los Angeles. 

Flight AA192 was scheduled to depart for the US at 6.10pm yesterday evening, though was canceled because of the fire, which started when a cargo loading vehicle caught fire near Gate 42.

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No crew or passengers had yet been loaded onto the jet at the time the fire started, though one airport staffer was injured trying to escape the scene. The 59-year-old man suffered facial and limb injuries after jumping from a vehicle and was sent to nearby Lantau Hospital. From there, he was later transferred over to Princess Margaret Hospital.

No other injuries were reported.

The fire broke out at around 5-5.30pm and was initially reported to have been caused by a baggage chute oil leakage. The South China Morning Post later confirmed that the loading vehicle had caught fire.

The fire appears to have broken out as baggage was being carried onto the plane, and some luggage may have been affected by the burning. 

The flames were extinguished shortly afterwards.

American Airlines confirmed the incident, telling Business Insider:

"An external piece of loading equipment had a mechanical issue and caught fire while preparing to put cargo in the hold of American Airlines flight 192 from Hong Kong (HKG) to Los Angeles (LAX). As a result, a pallet on the loading equipment containing non-hazardous goods also caught fire."

"The operator of loading equipment is being looked after by medical professionals with non-life threatening injuries."

Hong Kong's Airport Authority made arrangements for all affected passengers, who were all transferred to other flights. Meanwhile, the aircraft has been taken out of service so maintanence crew can evaluate it.

The Airport Authority has launched an investigation into the malfunction. American Airlines and its local ramp-service vendor are also said to be investigating the cause of the fire. 

[Images via hk.on.cc,  @ChinaAvReview,  @Airline_Alex,  @Phillip_in_HK, @LK154]

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