A passenger plane from Hong Kong Airlines heading to Hong Kong, which departed from Hangzhou, China, experienced an in-flight fire, prompting a change in its flight path to make an emergency landing. The fire was quickly extinguished, and there were no casualties.
According to reports from the Hong Kong daily Sing Tao and China Central Television (CCTV) on the 21st, Hong Kong Airlines flight HX115, which took off from Hangzhou, made an emergency landing at Fuzhou Changle International Airport due to a fire in the cabin's baggage compartment.
Shortly after takeoff, there was a sudden explosion, and white smoke began to fill the cabin. It is presumed that the fire originated from a backup battery inside the compartment, which crew members and passengers extinguished using bottled water and juice.
The passenger plane changed its flight path and landed at the nearby Changle International Airport, and there were no casualties. Some witnesses noted, “There was an explosion, and it took several minutes before the crew found the firefighting equipment,” criticizing the airline crew's response as inadequate.
The aircraft was an Airbus A320, carrying 160 passengers and 8 crew members at the time.
The fire that occurred on January 28 during the takeoff preparations of AIR BUSAN flight BX391 heading to Hong Kong at Gimhae International Airport has been revealed to be presumed caused by a short circuit in the backup battery, according to findings from the National Forensic Service.