Smoking smartphone sparks emergency evacuation of Alaska Airlines jet, two taken to hospital
- Reference: 1629849485
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2021/08/24/alaska_smartphone_fire/
- Source link:
The pilot ordered the evacuation of flight 751 from New Orleans to Seattle after someone's cellphone started to spit out sparks and smoke just after landing. As the aircraft was still waiting on the tarmac at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport for a gate, the slides were deployed and all 129 passengers and six crew made it out.
The errant mobe was also stuffed in a bag to curb its compact conflagration. Two people, we're told, were taken to hospital.
[1]
"The crew acted swiftly using fire extinguishers and a battery containment bag to stop the phone from smoking," a spokesperson for Alaska Airlines told The Register .
[2]
[3]
"Crew members deployed the evacuation slides due to hazy conditions inside the cabin. Two guests were treated at a local area hospital."
Airport officials, meanwhile, [4]said "only minor scrapes and bruises were reported."
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Alaska, along with some other airlines, has carried battery containment bags since 2016 amid a rash of exploding Samsung Galaxy Note 7 smartphones. The FAA [6]banned the handsets from commercial flights and Samsung eventually withdrew the devices at an [7]estimated cost of $2.3bn.
[8]Tesla battery fire finally flamed out after four-day conflagration
[9]iPhone XR caught fire after getting trapped in airline passenger's seat
[10]Apple iPad torched this guy's home, lawsuit claims
[11]Apple sued over fondleslab death blaze: iPad battery blamed for deadly New Jersey apartment fire
The [12]bags Alaska uses come in two sizes: a smaller one on the flight deck for the pilots' electronics, and a larger bag for the passengers.
The bags can withstand temperatures up to 3,200°F (1,760°C), come with heat resistant gloves to handle a burning device, and can be sealed into an airtight pocket to prevent a fire from getting out of hand and spreading.
Such bags can be a lifesaver if a lithium-ion battery fire breaks out mid-flight, giving the pilot time to find a safe spot to touch down. And as we saw in Seattle on Monday, they can be pretty useful on the ground, too.
Then again, all the heat-resistant bags in the world won't be much use if the aircraft's own batteries catch fire, as Boeing [13]demonstrated with its 787 Dreamliner. ®
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[4] https://twitter.com/flySEA/status/1430047658966614019
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[6] https://www.theregister.com/2016/10/14/galaxy_note_7_flight_ban/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2016/10/12/samsung_galaxy_note_7_cost/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2021/08/03/tesla_megapack_fire_australia/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2021/04/20/iphone_xr_inflight_fire_british_airways/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2021/03/27/apple_ipad_allegedly_torched_mans/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2019/06/24/apple_sued_over_fire/
[12] https://blog.alaskaair.com/travel-tips/fire-containment/
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2013/01/17/faa_grounds_boeing_787_batteries/
[14] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: Ah, for the good old days
Yeah, but you didn't need a 3200 degree containment bag for them.
Qudo's to Alaska Airlines for being prepared and staff for being fast thinking.
I want to know.......
Which $1,000 phone with the $1.00 battery in it caught on fire.
Re: I want to know.......
I read somewhere that most phone battery fires aboard planes were the result of the phone getting stuck in the seat which is then reclined or brought upright, or kept in a bag that's pushed with too much force under the seat or in the overhead compartment (the latter probably by some jackass who boards the plane after you and tries to cram his bag into a too small area, so never leave your phone, tablet, laptop, etc. in an overhead compartment!)
If it was damaged, it doesn't really matter what phone it was. Though even without damage, everyone phone is a potential fire waiting to happen since while we are quite good at manufacturing lithium batteries, we aren't able to do so with 100% success even when not cutting corners to make one of the super cheap third party batteries you can find on Amazon and eBay.
Absent apostrophes
> The bags Alaska uses come in two sizes: a smaller one on the flight deck for the pilots' electronics, and a larger bag for the passengers.
And that, kids, is why apostrophes matter.
Impressive!
"The bags can withstand temperatures up to 3,200°F (1,760°C), come with heat resistant gloves to handle a burning device, and can be sealed into an airtight pocket to prevent a fire from getting out of hand and spreading."
"The crew acted swiftly using fire extinguishers and a battery containment bag to stop the phone from smoking,"
I remember the good ol' days when the stewardess would just give a stern look and say "Sir, the no-smoking light is lit."
Ah, for the good old days
When batteries just corroded. Although, to be fair, that corrosion was just a slow form of burning.