Engine failure caused an American Airlines jet to "explode" during take-off at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, local media reports.
The right-side of the engine of the American Airlines Boeing 767 failed during an attempted take-off around 2.35pm local time, CNN reported.
All 161 passengers and nine staff on board Flight 383 to Miami, Florida were forced to escape via emergency slides.
Around 20 people suffered minor injuries and were taken to hospital in a stable condition, Chicago Fire Department tweeted.
https://twitter.com/CFDMedia/status/792154240013701121
The "uncontained" engine failure reportedly sent debris flying, with an engine fan disc nearly one kilometre from the crash site.
The runway was immediately shut down and emergency crews called to the scene.
Airport fire Chief Sampey told CNN the accident could have been "devastating" if engine problems occurred later in the flight.
"This could have been absolutely devastating if it happened later," Mr Sampey said.
Video posted to Twitter by user Jose Castillo shows passengers fleeing the burning plane while flames and plumes of black smoke rise from the far side.
"My dad just called me from the tarmac of Chicago airport, his airplane just exploded before as he was taking off," Mr Castillo wrote.
Another passenger, Sarah Ahmed, told WLS-TV the aircraft was speeding down the runway when she heard an explosion and saw flames and black smoke.
"People (were) yelling, 'Open the door! Open the door!' Everyone (was) screaming and jumping on top of each other to open the door," Ms Ahmed said.
The National Transportation Safety Board is expected to further investigate the accident.