An Air Caraïbes flight was forced to make an emergency landing last evening shortly after it took off from the Princess Juliana International Airport (PJIA) in St Maarten.
PJIA said the Airbus A330-323 took off from PJIA for Orly, France around 7:15 pm with over 46 passengers and 11 crew members on board when the engine caught fire.
The captain communicated a “code red” emergency and returned to the airport around 7:30 pm.
PJIA Director of Operations, Emile said there were no reported injuries among the passengers and crew.
Several residents of the island reported hear an explosion shortly after the plane’s take-off from PJIA
“WTF just saw a plane take off and heard a loud bang and saw the left engine catch on fire,” one man commented.
There were no injuries to passengers or crew.