Footage shows the horrifying incident as flames sputtered out of the Condor Boeing 757’s engine.
It happened shortly after take-off from the Greek holiday island of Corfu.
The flight had already reached an altitude of 36,000ft when the plane experienced a disruption to the turbine airflow, according to German broadcaster WDR.
It had been on course to fly to Düsseldorf before the blaze forced the pilots to make an emergency landing at Brindisi in Italy. Read more below