Airline scare! United Flight forced to return to Newark after flames seen coming from engine

A United Airlines flight to Los Angeles had to return to Newark Liberty International Airport Wednesday night after passengers saw flames coming from one of the engines.

News 12 Staff

Jan 16, 2020, 2:09 PM

Updated 1,560 days ago

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A United Airlines flight to Los Angeles had to return to Newark Liberty International Airport Wednesday night after passengers saw flames coming from one of the engines.
Flight 1871 landed safely after fire started to come from one of the engines soon after takeoff. A passenger tweeted a video of the incident.
A man's dashcam also captured the plane in the sky over Elizabeth with flames shooting from one of the engines. Another passenger posted on social media, calling the incident the most terrifying experience of her life.
That passenger says the pilot and crew were making announcements, but nobody could hear because many people on board were screaming.
United Airlines' website says the fire was due to a "technical issue" on the plane.
United Airlines tells News 12 New Jersey in a statement, “United 1871 from Newark, New Jersey to Los Angeles returned to Newark due to a mechanical issue. The flight landed safely and passengers deplaned normally. We changed aircraft to get our customers to their destination as soon as possible.
The passengers landed safely in Los Angeles Thursday morning.


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