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Passengers applauded the pilots of American Airlines flight 3256 after the crew and 63 passengers were evacuated from the plane Sunday near the Medford airport fire station. After an otherwise uneventful flight from Phoenix to the Rogue Valley, the SkyWest-operated jet was met by firefighters moments after Medford airport tower personnel alerted the crew smoke was coming from one of its engines when it touched down at 4:45 p.m. Passengers smelled fuel and smoke after they disembarked and applauded pilots for landing the plane safely. Airport Director Jerry Brienza said mechanics from Jet Center briefly inspected the 70-passenger Canadair Regional Jet before it was moved to Gate 1, and later moved again to make room for a replacement jet. He said St. George, Utah-based SkyWest had dispatched mechanics to inspect the plane. “There is more investigation to come, but it looks like it had something to do with, or around, the fuel pump,” Brienza said. The plane was scheduled to continue on to Los Angeles as Flight 3086 later Sunday, but that flight was canceled. Passengers headed for Los Angeles, as well as those boarding in Medford, had to wait until morning Monday when a replacement plane was sent to the Rogue Valley. That plane was airborne at 11:06 a.m. “The plane won’t be back into service with passengers until we get it into a SkyWest hangar and it undergoes an extensive inspection,” said SkyWest spokesman Layne Watson. “We’re still investigating what might have caused the issue, but there was no evidence of a fire.” Watson said a mechanic may find something right away or it may take much longer. “The FAA will be notified about what is found during the inspection,” he said. “Obviously, we’ll take our time to get all the facts and get the aircraft back into operation in a safe manner.” Reach reporter Greg Stiles at 541-776-4463 or [email protected] . Follow him on Twitter at @ GregMTBusiness or www.facebook.com/greg.stiles.31.