Air Busan plane catches fire before takeoff; all 176 on board safely evacuated

A passenger plane operated by South Korean low cost carrier Air Busan caught fire on the runway at Gimhae International Airport near Busan on Tuesday night while preparing for takeoff.

All 1-hundred-69 passengers and seven crew members on board the flight to Hong Kong were safely evacuated using emergency slides, though seven sustained minor injuries.

The fire reportedly started at the rear of the aircraft around 10:15 PM.

According to the National Fire Agency, it was completely extinguished by 11:31 PM, about an hour after firefighters arrived at the scene.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport says it will launch an investigation to determine the cause of the incident.