Footage of the burning American Airlines plane shows passengers made a big mistake

Photos of a burned-out American Airlines plane show dozens of passengers standing on the side with their bags - breaking one of the most important safety rules.

Flight attendants explain before the flight that bags should be left behind during emergencies to ensure a quick evacuation and increase survival.

Federal regulations require that airline cabin crew be able to deplane everyone within 90 seconds, assuming everyone follows the crew's instructions.

Aviation expert Geoffrey Thomas said bag-related obstacles could slow down evacuations and waste vital time.

"You have to get all the passengers out within 90 seconds," he said.

"Now, we're seeing evacuations lasting six and seven minutes because passengers insist on getting their bags," Thomas added.

It is understood that Thursday's incident occurred after the crew reported "engine vibrations" en route from Colorado Springs to Dallas/Fort Worth and diverted to Denver.

The engine caught fire after landing, prompting an evacuation, writes Business Insider, the Telegraph reports.

Read too American Airlines plane catches fire, forced to make emergency landing - footage released

And 12 people out of 172 on board were transported to the hospital with minor injuries.

But a slowed evacuation could lead to more injuries or even deaths.

In 2019, a Russian plane crashed and caught fire in Moscow, killing 41 of the 78 passengers and crew.

Many of the survivors were seen fleeing the plane with their bags, which aviation experts say likely hindered evacuation.

The opposite happened in January 2024, when a Japan Airlines plane collided with a smaller plane on the Tokyo runway.

All 379 people on that plane – which carried five times as many people as the Russian one – survived.

Aviation experts say part of the reason was because passengers abandoned their bags.

Things can be replaced – lives cannot. /Telegraph/