Terrifying moment United Airlines plane catches fire before takeoff at Chicago’s O’Hare airport sparking travel chaos on busy Memorial Day

A United Airlines flight aborted takeoff after the plane engine caught fire while on the taxiway at Chicago‘s O’Hare airport.

The Seattle bound United Flight 2091 with 148 passengers and five crew members on board was halted around 2pm Monday, according to the FAA. 

Video showed clouds of black smoke pluming out of the Airbus A320 wing. 

Ground crews and emergency responders ‘immediately addressed’ the issued and the plane was towed to the gate where passengers deplaned, reported NBC Chicago.

Video showed clouds of black smoke pluming out of the Airbus A320 wing

No injuries were reported and the passengers were offered alternative travel arrangements, according to the airline.

The engine blaze prompted all arriving flights at Chicago’s airport to be temporarily stopped. 

All flights were grounded at New York’s JFK on Monday – an occurrence attributed to ongoing thunderstorms seen across much of the US, the FAA said.

The travel chaos comes as citizens in Texas, Arkansas, Kentucky, Missouri and Tennessee were all hit over Memorial Day Weekend by a bevy of twisters, heavy winds and flooding, which, so far, have killed at least 21 people.

At least 6,837 within, into, or out of the United States have been delayed and 516 cancelled, according to FlightAware.

Memorial Day weekend kicked off the started of what is forecasted to be a busy summer travel season

The U.S. Transportation Security Administration said it screened 2.95 million airline passengers on Friday, the highest number ever on a single day.

The engine blaze prompted all arriving flights at Chicago’s airport to be temporarily stopped. Pictured: travelers at O’Hare International Airport on December 21

Last week, a group representing major U.S. airlines forecast record summer travel with airlines expected to transport 271 million passengers, up 6.3 percent from last year.

United Airlines forecasted it will handle 3 million travelers during the Memorial Day travel period, up nearly 10 percent and its highest number ever during the period. 

The forecast comes as the FAA is struggling to address a persistent shortage of air traffic controllers. Some airlines voluntarily trimmed New York flights last summer to address congestion issues and have raised new concerns about the lack of controllers.

Airlines can lose their takeoff and landing slots at congested airports if they do not use them enough.