Philippine Airlines Emergency Landing At LAX Caused By 'Loud Bang'

One of the engines of a Philippine Airlines (PAL) flight bound to Manila from Los Angeles caught fire shortly after take-off Thursday (early Friday, Philippine time), forcing the plane to make an emergency landing at the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).

Smartphone videos taken by passengers aboard Flight PR113 and posted to social media show a fire spewing from one of the Boeing 777's two large-diameter turbofan engines. PAL said the fire erupted on engine number two on the right wing.

Passengers that talked to media said the fire was preceded by a series of loud bangs after take-off from LAX. One of the passengers, Geri Lamata, posted a video on her Facebook page showing flames and black smoke near one of the wings. She said there were several loud bangs before the fire erupted.

"The plane jolted with every loud bang," Lamata told CNN Philippines. "Next thing we knew, a FA (flight attendant) from behind ran to the front to talk to the purser and that's when I definitely knew something was wrong.

"It (the banging) stopped shortly after and the pilots right away announced that we had engine problems but that everything was under control and then they landed the plane safely."

PAL spokesperson Cielo Villaluna said there were no reported injuries. She gave assurances all 347 passengers and 18 crew members aboard the flight are unhurt.

"It cannot be denied that they were alarmed by what they saw, but the pilot safely landed the aircraft. In fact, based on the report of the captain, the passengers burst into applause upon landing," said Villaluna to CNN Philippines.

The airline first said the plane was forced to return to LAX by an unidentified "technical problem." PAL, the Philippines' flag carrier, said it will investigate the cause of the black smoke emitted by the engine.

Villaluna said the plane will be grounded for the next three days pending the probe. She also said they are treating this as an isolated incident.

"We will look at the history and the maintenance aspect with regards to the aircraft. We take this as an isolated incident because this has not happened (before)," noted Villaluna.

PAL is assisting all affected passengers with their rebooking and hotel accommodations.