THIS is the frightening moment a Boeing passenger plane catches fire after take off – as flames are seen spitting out of the engine.

The engine of a Delta Airlines flight seemed to catch fire just before it had to return to Los Angeles after the frightening incident.

In the shocking footage, the Boeing 767-400 jet can be seen turning slightly as its left engine erupts with a raging inferno.

The horrified onlooker recording the harrowing footage is heard commenting over the concerning scenes.

They say: “Oh, look at that. Whoa!

“Was that a compressor stall? What’s going on?”

The huge aircraft continues to fly on as the terrifying fireball rages on under the plane’s engine.

The fire broke out as the plane was ascending over the City of Angels.

It was on its way to Atlanta, Georgia, before it was forced to return to its takeoff point.

The pilots managed to circle back before landing safely back on the runway.

Later on in the footage, the plane is seen descending back onto the tarmac.

Its landing gear thankfully comes down before the jet lands and the engine appears to be free from anymore flames.

Emergency vehicles are then seen rushing towards the aircraft in order to provide assistance.

And the jet was finally seen being escorted off of the runway back to its bay.

According to a Delta Airlines spokesperson, who spoke with the BBC: “Delta flight 446 made its way back to Los Angeles soon after takeoff due to a warning about a problem with the plane’s left engine.”

The chilling footage was captured by YouTube channel LA Flights which is run by Josh and Peter.

This alarming video surfaced following a separate Delta Airlines flight diversion, where a passenger allegedly carried an unsafe item onboard that led to a blaze.

Screams rang out, smoke clouded the seats, and flight attendants rushed to grab an extinguisher after the mid-air blaze broke out, one flyer on the plane revealed.

Delta confirmed that flight 1334, which was a Boeing 757 traveling from Atlanta, Georgia, to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, was diverted because of a battery fire on Monday.

The airline said that attendants “worked quickly” to extinguish a battery belonging to a customer that had spontaneously combusted, a spokesperson told USA Today.