VIDEO: Spirit airplane catches fire at Atlanta airport during landing

Atlanta firefighters rushed to the scene to put out the fire and quickly tow the place to the gate so passengers could disembark

By Katarina Hall

July 11, 2022 6:18am

Updated: July 11, 2022 9:46am

A Spirit airlines flight that landed in Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson briefly caught on fire after one of its brakes overheated on Sunday, according to airport officials.

Videos on social media show Spirit Airlines flight 383 from Tampa to Atlanta catching fire as it landed at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, officials from the international airport tweeted.

Spirit Airlines plane.. on fire at ATL? pic.twitter.com/NZV9PAwapJ
— Alaina Hardie (@trianglegrrl) July 10, 2022

Atlanta firefighters rushed to the scene to put out the fire and quickly tow the place to the gate so passengers could disembark.

“The aircraft was towed to the gate where guests safely deplaned without any injuries. Thank you to the Atlanta first responders for immediately meeting the aircraft. The plane will be temporarily removed from service for maintenance,” a statement from the airline read.

According to the airline, the plane’s brakes overheated, causing the fire.

No passengers were injured during the incident.

One passenger, Scottie Nelms, told Fox 5 that the flight was mostly uneventful and passengers only heard a weird noise coming from the left side of the plane. It wasn't until after they landed that they realized something was wrong.

"Nobody knew what it was until we stopped completely in the middle of the landing strip,” Nelms said. “We saw a flame coming from the engine and people and myself started freaking out.”

Another video shows what was happening inside of the plane at the time of the fire. Flight attendants can be heard telling passengers to remain seated and that they don’t need to evacuate.

"If the pilot gives us the command to evacuate we will evacuate, but please remain seated right now and keep the aisle ways clear," the crew announced over the intercom. "If we do have to evacuate, please just leave your bags. We will let you know, please remain seated."