An American Airlines aircraft on Monday caught fire at the Hong Kong's Chek Lap Kok international airport as cargo was being loaded. A piece of loading equipment caught fire while it was preparing to put cargo in the hold of the Boeing 777 aircraft. The cargo that was being loaded on the plane also caught fire in the process.
The flight from Hong Kong to Los Angeles was cancelled. One person was hurt, the airline said.
The fire started with a piece of loading equipment while it was preparing to put cargo in the hold of the plane. The container that was on the loading equipment also caught fire in the process, said Martha Thomas, a spokeswoman for the airline.
The cargo it contained was "non-hazardous," Thomas said, without providing details. She added that the airline was looking into the cause of the mechanical issue that triggered the fire.
Amateur footage and images showed flames and smoke rising from the container, and firefighters tackling the blaze from the tarmac.
Boarding had not yet started and no passengers or crew on Flight 192 were injured. The operator of the equipment is being treated for "non-life-threatening" injuries, she said.
The flight was scheduled to depart Hong Kong at 6:10 pm local time and arrive at Los Angeles at 4:30 pm local time, AP reported.
(With AP inputs)
