South Korean officials are launching an investigation into the cause of the fire that engulfed an Air Busan passenger plane, with eyewitness accounts suggesting a power bank may have sparked the blaze.

Airline passengers should ensure their power banks are in good condition and from reputable brands before boarding flights, experts have warned, after a charging device was suspected to have caused a fire on board an aircraft preparing for departure from South Korea to Hong Kong.

An Airbus plane belonging to South Korean carrier Air Busan caught fire on Tuesday at Gimhae International Airport in the country’s south while preparing for departure to Hong Kong, fire authorities said.

All passengers were safely evacuated when fire ripped through an Air Busan Airbus with 176 on board in South Korea on Tuesday. Newsweek reached out to Airbus and Air Busan for comment via email on Wednesday.

Portable power bank in overhead bin suspected to be at fault With speculation rising over the cause of the fire on an Air Busan aircraft carrying 176 people late Tuesday evening, authorities are planning to conduct a joint forensic investigation on Friday with 10 officials from France’s Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety,

An Air Busan Airbus A321 burst into flames at Busan Gimhae Airport (PUS) after the aircraft’s tail caught fire before takeoff, according to Yonhap News.

An Airbus A321 operated by South Korea’s Air Busan caught fire at Gimhae International Airport on Tuesday night while preparing for a flight to Hong Kong, fire authorities reported.

An Airbus plane belonging to South Korean carrier Air Busan caught fire on Tuesday at Gimhae International Airport in the country's south while preparing for departure to Hong Kong, fire authorities said.

An Air Busan flight awaiting departure to Hong Kong caught fire at Busan's Gimhae International Airport in southern South Korea. All 176 passengers and crew were evacuated before the flames destroyed the plane.

An Airbus plane belonging to South Korean carrier Air Busan caught fire on Tuesday at Gimhae International Airport in the country’s south while preparing for departure to Hong Kong, fire authorities said. All 169 passengers and seven crew members were evacuated, with three having minor injuries, fire authorities in Busan said.

At least three people were injured as an airplane caught fire at an airport in South Korea late Tuesday, Yonhap news reported. Fire authorities said the Air Busan plane bound for Hong Kong from Gimhae International Airport in Busan, some 320 kilometers southeast of Seoul, caught fire at its tail before takeoff.