Gimhae: The fire that broke out on an Air Busan plane last month occurred 10 minutes after an airport ordered its takeoff to be delayed, a preliminary investigation report showed Thursday, with the plane's captain instructing everyone on board to be evacuated one minute after the fire was detected. The Air Busan plane caught fire at Gimhae International Airport on Jan. 28, with all 176 people on board safely evacuated using an escape slide, though seven suffered minor injuries.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the six-page report was based on the results of the initial on-site probe conducted earlier this month but stopped short of ascertaining the cause of the fire. The scheduled time of takeoff of the Airbus jet bound for Hong Kong was 9:55 a.m., but while the plane was waiting to take off, the airport ordered it to be delayed at 10:04 a.m.
The fire then broke out at 10:14 a.m., and the captain ordered everyone on board to be evacuated at 10:15 a.m., according to the report. The fire was completely extinguished at 11:31 a.m. The cause of the fire has not yet been determined, though some passengers and crew members raised the possibility it was started by a portable battery or other items stored in an overhead bin.