Sydney, Nov 8 (IANS): A grassfire was ignited next to a runway at Sydney Airport following a reported engine explosion on a Qantas flight upon takeoff on Friday afternoon.

Fire and rescue crews were deployed to the airport, the busiest in Australia, to extinguish the blaze next to the third runway, Xinhua news agency reported.

News Corp Australia newspapers reported that the fire was caused by an engine explosion on Qantas flight QF520 to Brisbane, which departed Sydney just before 1 p.m. local time.

Flight tracking data showed that the Boeing 737-800 circled the area after takeoff before landing back at Sydney Airport at about 1:10 p.m.

According to Nine Network television, there were 174 passengers onboard and no serious injuries were reported.

Passenger Georgina Lewis told Nine Network television that she heard a loud bang upon takeoff.

"The pilot came on 10 minutes later to explain that they had a problem with a right-hand engine on take-off," she said.

Images posted on social media showed smoke billowing across the airport from the fire.