An Air China Airbus A330 caught fire at Beijing Capital International Airport yesterday afternoon as passengers were preparing to board.

The aircraft, which had flown from Singapore earlier in the day, was in the process of boarding passengers to Tokyo's Haneda Airport when smoke began to rise from the front of the aircraft, according to Aviation 24. The crew was immediately evacuated from the front jet bridge with no injuries reported.

Beijing Capital International Airport authorities issued a statement explaining that a storage unit aboard the aircraft caused the fire. Due to the extent of the damage, it is unlikely that the aircraft will be salvaged.

Shortly after the incident, Air China released a statement via its Weibo account confirming that: "Smoke was detected during boarding in the storage unit of flight CA183, which is set to fly from Beijing to Tokyo ... Crew members and airport staff have successfully put out the smoke. We are investigating the cause of the incident."

The fire comes at a particularly unwelcome and sensitive time for the government, one month before the opening of Beijing's new Daxing International Airport and celebrations for the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.

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Image: aviation24.be, China Aviation Review (Twitter)