The Malay Mail Online – 4 hours agoRELATED CONTENT
- Engine fire on a Kuala Lumpur to Kuala Terengganu flight on March 26, 2014. — Terengganu …
KUALA LUMPUR, March 26 — A passenger on a Malindo Air plane that suffered an engine fire this morning said he had then feared for his life.
Mohd Syafiq Shahari, a young scout traveling with the Terengganu Football team on board the Malindo flight, was among those who endured the harrowing experience of witnessing flames licking away at the plane’s port-side engine.
“I was scared… I thought I was going to die,” Mohd Syafiq told The Malay Mail Online when contacted
“We could feel the engine stopping abruptly, the plane was shaking,” the 25 year-old added tremulously in a brief interview with The Malay Mail Online.
Syafiq’s fear reflects the general anxiety felt by air travellers since the sensational disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 on March 8 while carrying 239 people on board.
After weeks’ of mystery, investigators now conclude that the MAS plane has crashed in the Indian Ocean with no survivors.
Air passengers’ unease were not calmed by further incidents involving MAS planes since.
Last Friday, a MAS plane suffered damage when it hit a flock of ducks in Nepal.
On Monday, another of the flag carrier’s planes was diverted from its flight Korea to Hong Kong after an onboard power generator malfunctioned.
When asked if the MH370 incident had contributed to his fears, the 25 year-old scout said: “Yes”.
In a statement following this morning’s incident, the newest local airline confirmed that the plane experienced the fire at 7,000ft during its ascent.
“The aircraft fire detection system was activated and immediately the operating crew carried out the emergency checklist as per the standard operating procedure to contain the situation,” it said.
The captain then opted to return to the airport and landed without further incident.
Malindo Air added that the cause of the incident is currently being investigated and has been reported to the relevant authorities, engine and aircraft manufacturer.
“I am just glad that no one was hurt,” Syafiq said of the safe return to the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport.
The passengers have since taken another flight to Terenganu.
Malindo is a joint venture between Malaysia’s National Aerospace and Defence Industries (NADI) and Lion Air of Indonesia.
It was incorporated in 2012 and began competing in the low-cost carrier market in 2013.
As of May last year, Malindo Air said it had flown a total of 50,000 passengers.
