Passengers looked on in horror as a fire broke out next to an American Airlines plane at an airport.

A piece of loading equipment caught fire at Hong Kong International Airport next to the plane that was due to to fly from the city to Los Angeles.

The Boeing 777 was close to the terminal shortly after 5pm local time (10am GMT) when the fire started to the left of the plane.

One man was injured as he tried to escape the flames, and is being treated for non-life threatening injuries.

According to the American Airlines website AA192, originally scheduled to take off at 6.10pm has been cancelled.

The fire was put out by firefighters as passengers watched the drama from the safety of the terminal building.

Footage from inside the airport shows families, including a young child, looking at the huge flames through the glass.

Many people recorded the extraordinary scene on their mobile phones.

Photos of the plane after the fire was extinguished shows water damaged cardboard boxes scattered on the floor beneath the passenger jet.

A spokesman for American Airlines said: "An external piece of loading equipment had a mechanical issue and caught fire while preparing to put cargo in the hold of American Airlines flight 192 from Hong Kong (HKG) to Los Angeles (LAX).

"As a result, a pallet on the loading equipment containing non-hazardous goods also caught fire.

"No passengers or crew were onboard or injured.

"The operator of loading equipment is being looked after by medical professionals with non-life threatening injuries.

"Flight AA192 has been cancelled and customers have been rebooked on other flights."