Boeing Jet Engine Catches Fire With Almost 500 Passengers Onboard, See The Terrifying Video
Boeing is once again making news for issues with its planes. The airplane manufacturer has been under scrutiny in recent years for manufacturing and safety issues, and now a plane carrying 468 people had to make an emergency landing in Indonesia after the engine spontaneously caught fire after taking off. The jet for Garuda Indonesia airline was taking off from Makassar on its way to Saudi Arabia when the incident occurred.
Fortunately, all 450 of the passengers and the 18 crew members of the Boeing jet were evacuated and unharmed…
A terrifying video of the incident shows the Boeing 747-400’s engine catching fire shortly after the plane leaves the runway. The pilot returned to the airport immediately, according to Garuda president Irfan Setiaputra. Speaking to the press, Setiaputra said, “The decision was made by the pilot in command immediately after take-off, considering engine problems that required further examination after sparks of fire were observed in one of the engines.”
Fortunately, all 450 of the passengers and the 18 crew members of the Boeing jet were evacuated and unharmed, according to the reports. Setiaputra also indicated that the plane was grounded and that an investigation is underway to determine the cause. Meanwhile, the passengers were given accommodations and a replacement flight the same day, though it’s hard to imagine that they weren’t pretty shaken up by the event.
It remains to be seen if Boeing will be prosecuted, but this recent fire certainly doesn’t bode well for the company’s public image…
Based on Boeing’s history in Indonesia, it’s good that this incident didn’t turn out much worse. In 2018, a 737 Max jet crashed in Indonesia, followed by a 2019 crash in Ethiopia, with a total death toll of 346 people between the two crashes. The airplane company was in the news earlier this week when the Justice Department told a federal judge that the company violated a settlement that allowed it to avoid criminal prosecution for these crashes.
Boeing reached a $2.5 billion settlement in 2021 to avoid a fraud charge for misleading regulators, blaming the incident on two employees. The letter to the Justice Department earlier this week claims that the company failed to make changes to detect and prevent violations of federal anti-fraud laws, which was promised as part of the settlement. This means that the company could be prosecuted for any federal criminal violation of which “the United States has knowledge,” according to the Justice Department.
If all this wasn’t enough, there’s also the fact that two Boeing whistle-blowers recently died, who had come forth about the company cutting corners for safety and manufacturing.
It remains to be seen if Boeing will be prosecuted, but this recent fire certainly doesn’t bode well for the company’s public image, which has gradually decreased due to the crashes and other recent events. Before the engine fire, the company came under security for an Alaska Airlines flight incident where the door plug flew out of a 737 Max during flight. In the meantime, the company must respond to these allegations before June 13.
If all this wasn’t enough, there’s also the fact that two Boeing whistleblowers recently died, who had come forth about the company cutting corners for safety and manufacturing. One reportedly died of illness, and the other died of what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Conspiracy theories about the deaths have run rampant, but no foul play has been reported at this time.
