A LATAM flight caught fire on take-off at Lima airport

(CNN) — Two firefighters died when a Ladam Airlines flight collided with a fire truck on the runway at Jorge Chavez International Airport, according to a statement released by Lima Airport Partners, the company that oversees Lima airport operations.

“There was an accident this afternoon on the runway of Jorge Chavez Airport. Lima Airport Stakeholders Consortium teams are providing passengers with the necessary attention and support,” the Ministry of Transport and Communications said in a Friday afternoon tweet. From Peru.

Flames from the plane were seen on social media as it skidded down the runway in the Peruvian capital.

A LATAM Airlines flight between Lima and Juliaca, Peru crashed on the ground. According to LATAM’s tweet, no deaths were reported.

We regret to confirm that flight LA2213 operated by LATAM Airlines Peru on the Lima – Juliaca route has crashed on the ground. No passengers or crew were killed.

— LATAM Peru (@LATAM_PER) November 18, 2022

The dead firefighters were identified as members of the Lima Airport Partners Aviation Fire Department, the statement said.

“We extend our condolences to the families of Angel Torres of Fire Squad ‘Garibaldi 6’ and Nicholas Santa Cadea of ​​Fire Squad ‘Garibaldi 7’.

We have already reached out to the families to offer our assistance,” Lima Airport Partners tweeted Friday afternoon.

LATAM Airlines Peru said “His flight LA ​​2213, covering the Lima – Juliaca route, was hit by a fire engine that entered the runway during takeoff at Jorge Chavez International Airport.”

The airport has announced that the airport will remain closed until 1pm tomorrow. [sábado] The accident investigation will continue.

Update: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that the fire occurred during landing. It has been updated to reflect what happened on departure.