Flybe plane evacuated at Exeter airport after cabin fills with smoke

Passengers had to use the evacuation slide

A Flybe flight had to be evacuated at Exeter Airport this morning after the engine made a loud noise and the cabin filled with smoke.

More than 100 passengers and five cabin crew had to flee the aircraft using the inflatable slides following the incident.

Flight BE4321 was due to depart for Alicante in Spain at 7.45am, but take-off was aborted after air in the cabin of the Embraer jet became “hazy”.

Video shows passengers evacuating via the slides and two fire engines at the scene.

Flybe said in a statement that the flight “experienced haze in the cabin just prior to take off".

“Flybe crew took the necessary precautionary measures and all 100 passengers and five crew members evacuated the aircraft safely.

“We are taking the situation very seriously and our immediate concern is for the welfare of all those involved.”

All passengers were returned to the airport terminal by 8am, while the runway was closed for around an hour.

Danny Keating, who was off on his stag do to Benidorm, told Heart Radio: “We’re all on the plane about to take off and the engine makes a loud banging noise and the cabin fills up with smoke.”

He added that the pilots shouted “evacuate, evacuate” over the Tannoy, the doors were opened and the slides deployed.

“People were going down the slides, people flying everywhere,” he said.

“Something that you can tick off the bucket list, but usually it happens right at the end of your bucket list. It was interesting going down the slides.

“That’s probably the only positive you can take – well, and that it didn’t happen 30 seconds later when we were in the air. That would have been a little bit worse.”

Flybe said it had secured a replacement aircraft and the flight was now rescheduled to depart from Exeter at 12.35pm.

“Flybe ground handling teams are currently taking care of passengers,” the airline said in a statement.