Passengers flee as aircraft explodes

The 157 passengers and eight crew members had barely finished sliding down the emergency chutes of the smoking China Airlines jet today when it suddenly exploded, and flames engulfed the centre of the craft.

For the scores of holiday-makers and others who had flown on the Boeing 737-800 from the Taiwanese capital, Taipei, to Naha on the Japanese island of Okinawa it was a moment of sheer terror — even if there were no serious injuries.

[Many airlines in India also use the Boeing 737-800 aircraft that was engulfed in flames in Naha today.]

Screams erupted from the tarmac as passengers raced to get away from the burning plane, and emergency personnel moved forward to begin putting out the flames.

A figure thought to be the pilot hung onto the cockpit window for several seconds before dropping to the tarmac and sprinting away from the exploding plane.

A Taiwanese woman said she was stricken with fear the moment she slid down the chute. “I was running and crying,” said the woman, who declined to identify herself. “Running and crying.”