Daijiworld Media Network - Newark

Newark, Feb 19: A JetBlue flight was forced to make an emergency landing at Newark Liberty International Airport on Wednesday evening after smoke was reported in the passenger cabin, prompting an evacuation onto the tarmac and a temporary airport shutdown.

JetBlue Flight 543, operated by an Airbus A320, had departed Newark shortly after 5:30 p.m. en route to West Palm Beach when the crew reported an engine issue and smoke in the cabin, according to the Port Authority.

Approximately 17 minutes after take-off, the aircraft returned to Newark for an emergency landing.

“We’re just going to exit the runway and have fire/rescue make sure the number one engine is OK,” the pilot told air traffic controllers in audio captured by LiveATC.net.

Shortly after touchdown, the situation escalated as smoke persisted in the rear of the cabin. “We got smoke in the back. We are going to have to be evacuating here in a second,” the pilot informed controllers.

Emergency exit slides were deployed, with responders alerting the control tower: “He’s going to pull the chutes.”

An air traffic controller subsequently announced: “Attention all aircraft, Newark Airport is closed,” as operations were temporarily suspended.

No injuries were reported in the incident. The Federal Aviation Administration issued a ground stop, halting inbound flights to Newark until around 7 p.m. ET.

In a statement, JetBlue said, “Safety is JetBlue’s top priority. We are focused on supporting our customers and crewmembers and will work closely with the appropriate federal authorities to investigate what occurred.”

The FAA has launched an investigation into the incident.