Aircraft makes emergency landing after engine comes off

A Boeing 737 had to make an emergency landing at Cape Town International Airport when it lost an engine during take off.

The plane was carrying over 100 people and had to circle the runway to lose fuel and to wait for the runway to be cleared of debris before landing.

It's thought the aircraft's right engine separated from the wing, a passenger said:

"I heard this huge bang, and he said, 'That's our engine that's just fallen off.' I couldn't believe it. He had to repeat it to me," she told SAPA.

"The plane started to shake a bit, but what was amazing was the staff and passengers: everybody was so calm. There was no hysteria, no nothing, it was amazing. The guy next to me seemed to know something about planes. He said, 'Don't worry: the plane will go with one engine.' So I thought, 'that's OK.'"

When the plane came to a standstill the pilot entered the cabin and everyone cheered.

The incident is still being investigated.