Korean Air plane catches fire minutes before taking off from Tokyo airport

302 passengers and 17 crew members were evacuated after an engine fire broke out on the Boeing 777-300

The Korean Air plane was sprayed with foam by firefighters following an engine fire (Reuters)

A Korean Air plane caught fire minutes before taking off from a Tokyo airport.

Flight 2708 to Seoul from Haneda Airport had 302 passengers and 17 crew members on board when it was evacuated after an engine fire broke out on the Boeing 777-300.

Two men and five women were reportedly injured in the incident.

(Reuters)

The cause of the fire is not yet known.

Japanese television broadcast live images of at least two fire trucks blanketing the left-side engine and almost the entire side of the plane with what appeared to be white foam as smoke came out the back of the engine, according to the Associated Press.

Firefighters extinguished the blaze within an hour.

(EPA)

Emergency chutes could be seen to have been deployed from the plane’s doors.

Crowds gathered next to the runway, which was shut, with all flights from the airport delayed.

(Reuters)