A British Airways Boeing 747 in Spain has caught fire, according to images from social media. The aircraft appears to be G-CIVD, one of the 747s currently located in Spain following the type’s retirement from the British Airways fleet.
Fire on retired, former British Airways 747-400
“Emergency services quickly extinguished the fire on one of our retired aircraft, which occurred during the dismantling process. No injuries were reported.” -British Airways
The aircraft is actually no longer owned by British Airways and has been retired from service for some time. Parked on a remote stand, the aircraft was marked for dismantling by its new owners at a regional airfield.
It’s believed that the fire was caused by the aircraft insulation catching a spark from dismantling equipment.
British Airways began an accelerated retirement of its fleet of Boeing 747 aircraft earlier this year as a result of the huge drop in passenger demand being experienced globally. As a result, aircraft have been ferried to sites around Europe to be scrapped, preserved, or even turned into movie props. G-CIVD, the aircraft thought to have caught fire, last flew on August 18th on a ferry flight to Castellon.
Um incêndio atingiu um Boeing 747-400 (G-CIVD) da @British_Airways, esta manhã, em Castellon (CDT), na Espanha.
A aeronave estava desde agosto no aeroporto, após 26 anos de operações na companhia.
As causas estão sendo apuradas.
📺: @flynewsmagazine pic.twitter.com/jRQ7ewg2ya
— Portão 1 (@portaoum) November 23, 2020
While the exact time of the fire is unknown at the moment, we can see that the Castellón Airport’s Twitter feed reported the fire contained as early as 12:42 UTC.
Los bomberos del aeropuerto de Castellón (@CDTairport) y del @SIAB_Castellon trabajan de forma conjunta en la extinción de un incendio en una aeronave. No ha habido que lamentar heridos y el fuego se encuentra ya confinado. pic.twitter.com/KuQtz9BW4O
— Aeropuerto de Castellón (@CDTairport) November 23, 2020
