Terror as smoke fills cabin on flight from Philippines to Los Angeles (2025)

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A Los Angeles-bound flight from the Philippines was forced to make an emergency landing in Japanas the aircraft filled with smoke.

Philippine Airlines Flight PR102, carrying 355 passengers and four crew members, took off fromManila International Airport at approximately 10 pm on Wednesday.

Trouble arose when one of the air conditioners in the cabin started smoking, Philippines news organizationABS-CBN reported.

'It was so bad. The smoke filled the air. We all covered our mouths and noses as staff seemed to panic,' passengerValerie Del Castillo told the outlet, adding she woke up to the smell of burning plastic.

'I didn't panic until a representative came on the intercom announcing we will be looking for a place to emergency land the plane with a quivering voice.I could hear the fear in his words.'

Terrified occupants recalled how the smoke stung their eyes and lungs when the chaos erupted.

Shocking footage captured by Reyvie Hernandez, a man onboard, showed passengers covering their mouths with their shirts and pillows to avoid smoke inhalation.

TheBoeing 777 diverted to Tokyo's Haneda Airport just before 2:30 am local time, Philippine Airlines told ABC 7.

An airline spokesperson explained to ABS-CBN the flight finally 'landed safely' at around 3:30 am, but the plane was not assigned a gate until about 10 am.

In the meantime, passengers and crew had to patiently wait onboard. The doors of the vessel were opened to air out the remaining smoke, most of which was reportedly gone by the time the plane landed.

On-flight video captured flight attendants prying open one of the cabin doors. 'Oh my God,' one of the women exclaimed when the door finally opened.

AlthoughDel Castillo pointed out the staff appeared flustered, others commended them for their efforts.

'They did the best they could. There’s so many people crying and panicking at one point. Some passengers got up,' passenger Jennifer Taylor told ABS-CBN.

'The flight attendants were able to calm everybody down and eventually got everybody back on their seat.'

Comedian Jo Koy was on the horrifying flight and shared a message about the experience after he offboarded.

'We had to do an emergency landing in Tokyo, Japan,' he said in the video.

'The flight attendants on Philippine Airlines were amazing...Thank you for remaining calm in a situation that could have went south fast.'

No one was injured and Tokyo's Department of Transportation is working to accommodate everyone impacted by the diversion, ABS-CBN reported.

DailyMail.com has reached out toPhilippine Airlines for comment.

This incident comes nearly two weeks after an American Airlines flight from New York to Japan was forced to turn aroundand go back to the US despite being 12 hours into the 14-hour trip.

American Airlines Flight 167, bound for Haneda Airport, departed from John F. Kennedy International Airport at 10:45 am ET on March 31.

The Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft was flying over the Pacific Ocean, off the coast of Alaska, when the pilots were forced to turn around due to maintenance issues.

Instead of returning to an airport along the West Coast, the plane flew for another five hours to land at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport around 10 pm CT.

These passengers were reportedly put in a hotel in Texas and left for Tokyo again the next day.

Los AngelesJapan

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