Car catches fire as Panetta lands in Afghanistan

An Afghan driven car was up in flames following an explosion onto the ramp area of a British airfield in Afghanistan, just when US defence secretary Leon Panetta's airplane landed there on Wednesday, the Pentagon said.

An Afghan driven car was up in flames following an explosion onto the ramp area of a British airfield in Afghanistan, just when US defence secretary Leon Panetta's airplane landed there on Wednesday, the Pentagon said.

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According to Pentagon spokesman John Kirby, no one in Panetta's party was injured, but the driver in the stolen vehicle suffered burns and was being treated, Xinhua reported.

There's no word on the motives of the incident and no explosives were found in the vehicle.

On Wednesday, Panetta paid an unannounced visit to Afghanistan and visited southern Helmand province.

The visit took place three days after a US soldier entered civilian homes in Panjwai district of Kandahar province, killing 16.