Boeing jet engine seen spewing fire on Air Canada flight: 'Heart in mouth moment'

Air Canada explained that the fire on the Boeing 777 aircraft was caused by an "engine issue that was determined to be a compressor stall." This can happen with a turbine engine when its aerodynamics are affected, causing the flow of air through the engine to be disrupted and fuel to ignite further down the engine. This is why flames were visible in the video of the incident.

Air Canada cited a "compressor stall" as the reason for the visible flames in the video. This occurs when the flow of air through the engine is disrupted, causing fuel to ignite further down the engine.