By Aaron Cooper, Caroll Alvarado, CNN

(CNN) — The FAA is investigating after a Sun Country Airlines Boeing 737 returned to Los Angeles International Airport with flames streaking from its right engine on Monday.

“We weren’t even in the air 25 minutes and it sounded like lightning had struck the plane or something had exploded,” passenger Ruth Sorensen told CNN. “We could actually hear the engine, shutting down after this happened and the flames were coming out.”

Flight 430 was flying to Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport with 166 passengers onboard when it experienced “an issue” with one engine after take off and declared an emergency, the airline said in a statement.

“I was actually seated next to the engine that caught on fire. I saw just a really bright flash out the window,” A passenger named Sarah told CNN affiliate WCCO. “The passenger next to me held hands and kind of comforted each other, bracing for the worst.”

The pilots declared an emergency and returned to land safely at LAX where they were met by fire trucks before eventually taxing to the gate.

“We slept on the airport floor from 3 a.m. until 8:30 a.m. to get on a new Sun Country flight to go home,” Sorensen said.

“Our passengers and crew are our priority, and we appreciate the professionalism of our pilots and flight attendants to ensure the safety of our customers,” the airline said in a statement.

CNN’s Christine Sever contributed to this report.

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