Passengers were left sweating inside a plane when the air conditioning system failed while taking off.

Low-cost airline Nok Air flight DD506 was departing from Bangkok to Hat Yai in the south when the plane's engine failed on the runway at the Don Mueang International Airport on May 4.

Footage shows people fanning themselves with pamphlets as they baked inside the aircraft stuck on the runway.

A disgruntled passenger likened the experience to a Songkran water fight, as they were drenched in sweat due to the heat. The travellers were later allowed to stay in the departure lounge, before they were informed to return to their seats on the plane.

The Boeing 737 finally took off five hours behind schedule.

The passenger said: 'The captain tried to assure us that it was safe to take off, but some passengers complained that they didn't want to fly with this plane until the airline changed it for them.'

The engine failure resulted in a five-hour delay, and the flight took off at 6:24 pm instead of 1:20 pm as scheduled.

Later that day, another Nok Air flight, DD5340 flying from Bangkok to Phuket, was delayed for six hours because of the same issue.

The plane's engine reportedly shut down while taxiing on the runway, leaving passengers stuck inside for hours. The departure time was shifted from 6:50 pm to 12:20 am on May 5.

A passenger said he was frustrated over the delay because he was travelling with his parents and five-year-old nephew.

He said: 'The airline compensated us with a doughnut and a small bottle of water, both of which we had to ask for.'

The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand said it was seeking an explanation from Nok Air for the flight disruptions.

In a May 6 statement, the budget airline said: 'When the aircraft were waiting for take-off on the runway, we were informed by the pilot about the technical difficulties.

'For all passengers' safety, the pilots had to bring the planes back to the stands and contacted the ground staff to bring passengers out and take care of them according to regulations.

'After engineers performed an inspection and resolved the issue according to safety standards, the aircraft were able to travel to their destinations safely.'