TOKYO, May 27 (Xinhua) -- A Korean Air passenger plane terminated takeoff from Tokyo's Haneda airport Friday after its left engine caught fire, affecting the travel of some 70,000 people with over 400 flights cancelled as a result of the incident.

The Boeing 777-300, bound for Seoul from Tokyo, was reported to have caught fire at the left engine soon after it began its takeoff run down the runway around 12:40 p.m. local time.

The 302 passengers and 17 crew members onboard the plane were forced to evacuate. Seven people sustained scratches while evacuating via the slide, and some 30 people reportedly felt unwell through inhalation of smoke.

Several passengers reported afterwards that they heard a pop sound and saw flames around the engine before the aircraft abruptly stopped on the runway.

The police said there were no immediate signs that terrorism was involved in the incident, while Korean Air said in a statement later that "efforts will be made as soon as possible to determine what caused the defect in the engine."

The aircraft has been used by Korean Air since 1999, with no record of problems before, said the airline.

The runway the plane was due to take off from was closed until the stricken airplane was removed about six hours later. Three other runways have been temporarily closed but resumed operation around 2:30 p.m..

At least three flights scheduled to arrive at Haneda were redirected to nearby Narita airport, while over 407 flights have been cancelled as the runways were closed for hours.

The travel of some 70,000 people were affected by the flight cancellation, including some Diet members who had to cancel the plan of attending a ceremony at the Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima where U.S. President Barack Obama gave a speech.