CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. — Passengers on a Spirit Airlines flight were startled when the plane caught on fire during its landing.
Scottie Nelms said he pulled out his cell phone and started recording the exact moment part of the plane caught fire.
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In the recording, you can hear Spirit crew members on Flight 383 from Tampa to Atlanta asking passengers to stay seated, after the plane landed at the Atlanta-Hartsfield Jackson International Airport.
Parts of the plane’s brake pads overheated and caught fire and Nelms described his initial reaction to what was occurring.
“You heard two loud thumps, like the first one you’re supposed to hear, when you’re landing. It was like 3 to 5 seconds after that you heard another loud thump,” he said.
“Everybody started panicking and getting up, those who were near the wing, the left wing and they were trying to look up and see, and they saw there was a fire.”
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Channel 2′s Larry Spruill obtained several videos from other passengers. One video showed the plane with smoke all around it. Another video showed emergency crews fighting the smoke.
“At that point, when I realized what was going on, like when I woke up. I was like what was that noise, but I shook it off. I saw people starting to get up and rushing to the front of the plane, that’s when my heart kind of dropped,” Nelms said.
Channel 2 also obtained audio from Air Traffic Control as they responded.
“The Spirit 27 Left, or 27 Right, its brakes are on fire. The left brakes are on fire. We’re working with them right now, I just saw that. We got the trucks going.”
Spirit Airlines released this statement, it said in part: “The aircraft was towed to the gate where Guests safely deplaned without any injuries. Thank you to the Atlanta first responders for immediately meeting the aircraft. The plane will be temporarily removed from service for maintenance.”
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Meanwhile, Nelms said he’s hesitant about getting on another Spirit Airplane.
“Does it change your mind at all about flying Spirit?” Spruill asked.
“It definitely does, if I have to spend a little bit more, I will do that.”
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