Federal safety officials are investigating an American Airlines flight that fired on the runway at Denver International Airport on Thursday.
The National Transportation Safety Board sends two investigators to the scene and launches a lengthy process of trying to determine the cause of the incident. Investigators will inspect the aircraft, conduct interviews with witnesses and crews and retrieve other data, NTSB officials wrote in an email from CPR News.
The preliminary report will be available in 30 days. However, the final report detailing the possible causes of the event takes more than a year to complete.
In the meantime, here’s what we know about Thursday’s incident:
4:52pm
American Airlines Flight 1006 took off from Colorado Springs Airport towards Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. The Boeing 737 was built in 2012, records show, with 172 passengers and six crew members.
5:14pm
According to FlightAware, the flight detoured to Denver International Airport about 20 minutes after takeoff. The crew had reported vibrations in the engine, the Federal Aviation Administration said.
“Not an emergency, just to make sure it’s correct?” I asked the air traffic controllers to the plane’s crew, following the recording posted to Liveatc.net.
“The engine is vibrations so we’re cruised slowly than usual,” replied one of our crew.
It is not clear why the plane didn’t return to Colorado Springs Airport. A spokesman for the airport there presented CPR News questions about the conversion to American Airlines that did not reply to Friday’s request for comment.
FlightAware
Denver International Airport spokesman Michael Konopasek has also postponed the airline, but added that the airport’s operations and safety teams are “every time there’s a change.”
“We’re extremely proud of the team we’re here and how quickly they’ll jump into action when they need it,” he said. “And I saw it yesterday.”
5:55pm
The flight landed at Denver International Airport with each flightware. The plane had been directing it to Gate C38 when it started the fire, the FAA said.
“Mayday, Mayday, Mayday, Mayday” is said on the radio in another recording released on Liveatc.net. “Engine fire.”
Numerous videos about social media from airport passengers show fires burning around and under one of the jet’s turbine engines under the right wing. It is unknown what caused the fire. American Airlines calls it an “engine-related problem.”
“We thank our crew, our Den team and our first responders for their prompt and decisive action, as a priority, to ensure the safety of everyone on board,” an American Airlines spokesperson said in a statement Thursday evening.
The crew and passengers were all evacuated, and at least 12 people were sent to hospitals in the injured area, an airport spokesperson said.
The airport was expected to reopen on Friday, officials said, and the airport continues to operate normally outside GATE C38.
CPR’s Alejandro Alonso Galva contributed to this report.
