Saudi flight with 297 onboard catches fire while landing at Pakistan airport. Watch video

A Saudi Airlines flight from Riyadh caught fire upon landing at Pakistan's Peshawar airport on Thursday. There were 276 passengers and 21 crew members in that flight who were safely evacuated.

As per reports, the plane caught fire upon landing at Peshawar's Bacha Khan International Airport.

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) spokesperson Saifullah later said that the air traffic controllers witnessed smoke and sparks emanating from the left-hand side landing gear of the aircraft as it landed and alerted the pilots.



Upon arrival, CAA fire vehicles quickly extinguished the flames engulfing the landing gear.

"The fire tenders acted in time and immediately controlled the fire in the landing gear, saving the aircraft from a major accident," CAA spokesperson Saifullah stated.

"All 276 passengers and 21 crew members were safely evacuated with an inflatable slide," he added.

Airport officials confirmed that Peshawar's Bacha Khan International Airport remains operational, and all flights are continuing as scheduled.

Global Defense Insight has posted pictures of parts of the plane on its Twitter account.

"The Air Traffic Controller promptly communicated the incident to the pilot, and the Fire and Rescue Services, who arrived in time and were able to swiftly extinguish the fire and prevent a major accident", the post read.

"All 276 passengers and 21 crew members were safely evacuated from the aircraft using the inflatable slide. The flight had originated from Riyadh for Peshawar", it added.