Irish airport reopens after plane fire prompts flight suspensions

An Irish airport has reopened after flights were suspended when a plane used to carry US military personnel caught fire before take-off.

Air traffic controllers spotted smoke and flames coming from the Boeing 763 as it taxied along the runway at Shannon Airport.

The plane was an Omni Air International 531, used to transport personnel for the US military.

Airport emergency services extinguished an external fire on the undercarriage, and the airport was closed until 11.15am on Thursday.

All passengers and crew were evacuated safely from the plane and returned to the terminal building.

There were no reports of serious injuries.

A spokesman for the airport said: “Shannon Group has confirmed that thanks to the swift response of the Shannon Airport emergency services team, the airport reopened at 11.15am after the successful removal of a plane from the runway following an incident earlier this morning.

“As there has been flight disruption, intending passengers have been asked to contact their airlines. Updates are available on the airport social media channels.

“We would like to extend our thanks to the IAA (Shannon Tower Business Unit) and our airline partners for their support in the management of the incident.”

A number of flights to England and Scotland were cancelled after the incident.