BREAKING NEWS: Three injured and London City Airport closed as engine 'explodes' on Swiss jet during take-off

Three people were injured and London City Airport was forced to close for more than an hour after a departing plane's engine 'exploded' as it was taking off. A passenger on board Geneva-bound flight LX437 said there was a large bang, flames which 'grew and grew' and 'large chunks of what looked like red-hot metal' flying into the air. He added: 'In about 20 seconds we would have been in the air'. Three passengers were treated for ‘minor injuries’ and others remained in shock after the incident which caused other incoming planes to be diverted and departing flights to be postponed or cancelled. Passengers posted photos on Twitter of the stricken Geneva-bound Swiss plane being evacuated as 74 passengers and four crew got out onto the runway and sought refuge on the apron. Mike Mompi, 28, who was flying to Switzerland for a ski holiday, said the Swiss International Airlines Avro RJ100 was revving up on the runway for take-off when it happened. He said: 'There was a large bang and flames which grew and grew and large chunks of what looked like chunks of red-hot metal started flying up. 'People started freaking out...In about 20 seconds we would have been in the air.' Mr Mompi added on his Twitter account that the plane was ‘just firing up for take-off on the main runway’ when the explosion happened. He refuted the airport's claim there had only been a 'minor technical incident', saying: 'Exploding engine a minor technical incident?! 20 seconds more we'd been in the air. Mr Mompi, a social impact investment adviser for London firm Impact Investment, said he didn't think anyone had been injured by the engine. He suggested it was more likely they were hurt as people tried to get off the aircraft. Swiss International confirmed that the RJ100 aircraft suffered an engine problem and the pilot aborted take-off. A spokeswoman said: "The pilot aborted take-off at low speed due to an engine problem. 'Passengers and crew have been safely evacuated.' Air Accident investigators launched an immediate inquiry and classified the incident as serious. The Air Accident Investigation Branch said in a statement: ‘The AAIB have deployed a team to investigate a serious incident (involving only minor injuries) at London City Airport.’ London City Airport said one departing flight was cancelled and four were diverted because of the incident. An airport spokesman said the plane was at the beginning of the runway when the technical glitch caused the plane to become stranded:’It had not started down the runway to take-off.’ She said: ’The crew ordered the evacuation.’ She could not say whether smoke or a suspected fire prompted the evacuation. The three injuries happened after crew deployed emergency chutes and passengers used them to escape the plane. In a statement airport officials said: ‘London City Airport can confirm that a technical issue occurred onboard Swiss flight LX437, due to depart to Geneva at around 15.00 on Thursday 27 March 2014. 'Seventy-four passengers and four crew were evacuated immediately and three people were treated at the scene for minor injuries by the London Ambulance Service. 'The runway was closed temporarily and re-opened at 16.15.’ On its website the airport noted: ‘The airport runway is currently closed due to a minor technical incident. Flights will be disrupted, passengers should contact their airline for info.’ Later it posted: ‘The runway is now open, but flights may be affected by the earlier disruption.’ London CityAirport is smaller thanits counterparts Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted, but still has more than 3 million passengers pass through its doors each year. Some 250 aircraft a day use the runway, many of them small charter flights or private jets catering to the City of London. Source- Daily mail