Moscow's Vnukovo airport closed after plane catches fire

PanARMENIAN.Net - Moscow's Vnukovo Airport was temporarily closed on Saturday, May 18 morning after a plane carrying about 140 people from the southern Russian city of Stavropol caught fire upon landing, a law enforcement source said.

No one was reported injured in the incident, according to RIA Novosti.

“The plane’s left landing gear leg caught fire upon landing. Preliminary reports suggest the brake wheels were destroyed,” the source said, adding that the airport was closed at 7:48 Moscow time and would be reopened at about 10 a.m. after the aircraft – a Boeing-737 operated by the UTair airline – had been removed from the runway.

The Russian news channel Rossia 24 showed footage of the plane surrounded by rescue workers on the runway. One firefighter at the scene confirmed to the channel’s reporter that the incident had been “dangerous.”