Flight returns to airport in New Jersey after engine problem

WASHINGTON, Aug. 18 (Xinhua) -- A United Airlines flight returned to the Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey Saturday after an engine problem erupted during its takeoff, media reports said.

An FBI official said a tire of the passenger plane blew during takeoff and flew into an engine, according the reports by CNN.

The Berlin-bound flight then circled the airport and landed at around 8:05 p.m. local time after burning fuel for more than an hour, said the Federal Aviation Administration.

An eyewitness, who was driving on a road near the airport, said she saw fireballs near a wing shortly after the plane took off, according to the reports.

The Newark Airport, located about 24 km southwest of Midtown Manhattan in New York, is a major airport in the New York-New Jersey metropolitan area.