Shannon Airport is back up and running after a fire on board an aircraft this morning caused a five-hour shutdown.
Nearly 150 passengers were evacuated from the jet after the fire broke out in its undercarriage shortly after 6am.
Delays are continuing this lunchtime, as Clare FM’s James Mulhall reports from Shannon Airport.
At thirteen minutes past six this morning, air traffic control here at Shannon Airport first smoke coming from the Omni Air Boeing 767-300, as it was taxi-ing back to the terminal.
Just over two minutes later, as more smoke became visible, the quick thinking controllers made a call to evacuate the 145 passengers and 14 crew off the plane
Within seconds, the Shannon Airport fire service were on the scene, and the blaze was quickly extinguished.
However, it would be nearly 11:00 before the plane, a civilian jet that transports personnel for the United State’s military, could be moved off of the runway
Flights resumed a short time later, but only after considerable disruption and the cancellation of a number of Aer Lingus services to and from the UK.
The passengers and crew on board the plane have been bussed to local hotels.
Flights have resumed, but as a result of earlier delays to flights passengers are urged to continue to monitor flight updates and to contact their airlines.
Shannon Airport Operations Director Niall Maloney says it’s down to the work of their emergency response crews that they were able to get things back up and running so quickly.
He’s advising people to contact their airlines for updated flight details.
