A Samsung Note 2 smartphone caught fire and emitted fumes in the overhead storage compartment inside the cabin of a Chennai-bound IndiGo flight in mid air on Friday, causing a scare among the 175 pass
A Samsung Note 2 smartphone caught fire and emitted fumes in the overhead storage compartment inside the cabin of a Chennai-bound IndiGo flight in mid air on Friday, causing a scare among the 175 passengers on board the flight from Songapore.
The plane, however, made a safe landing at the Chennai airport after fire extinguishers were used on board to douse the fire. This is the first incident of a Samsung phone device catching fire onboard a flight mid-air in India. Aviation regulator DGCA said it was issuing an advisory to airlines asking them to ensure that passengers carrying “any type of Samsung note phones” should be asked to switch off the phones before boarding the aircraft which in effect means a ban on use of the Samsung note series of mobile phones carried on person or in the hand-baggage on board flights. Carriage of the Samsung note phone series may be banned for check-in baggage. The DGCA has now summoned Samsung officials on Monday to discuss the issue. This comes after the Ministry of Civil Aviation had on September 9 issued a public notice prohibiting the use of Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7 smartphone on board aircraft. South Korean manufacturer Samsung on Friday said it was examining the fresh incident.
In a statement, IndiGo said, “IndiGo confirms that a few passengers travelling on flight 6E-054 flight from Singapore to Chennai noticed the smoke smell in the cabin this morning (September 23) and immediately alerted the cabin crew on board.
The crew quickly identified minor smoke coming from the hat-rack of seat 23 c and simultaneously informed the pilot-in-command.
Taking the precautionary measure, the cabin crew on priority relocated all passengers on other seats, and further observed smoke being emitted from a Samsung note 2 which was placed in the baggage (of a passenger) in the overhead bin. There was no fire observed but sparks were observed.
The crew discharged the fire extinguisher which is as per the Standard Operating Procedures prescribed by the aircraft manufacturer, and quickly transferred the Samsung note 2 into a container filled with water in lavatory. The crew discharged the fire extinguisher which is as per the Standard Operating Procedures prescribed by the aircraft manufacturer, and quickly transferred the Samsung note 2 into a container filled with water in the lavatory. The aircraft made a normal landing and all passengers were deplaned as per normal procedure. This equipment (Samsung mobile) will be further examined by the concerned departments. IndiGo has voluntarily informed the DGCA.”
DGCA sources said, “An advisory is being sent to airlines to make passengers aware on carriage of any type of Samsung Note phones in the aircraft. These phones will have to be switched off if it is being carried on person or as part of the hand-baggage. Samsung officials are being called in at the DGCA on Monday to discuss the issue. Till then, we have asked the airline to keep in its custody the phone that has got damaged in the incident.”
The aviation regulator had earlier banned the use of Samsung Galaxy Note 7 onboard an aircraft following a series of incidents of the smartphone’s battery exploding in various countries. On September 9, the Civil Aviation Ministry had said, “The Ministry of Civil Aviation has issued a public notice prohibiting the use of Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7 smartphone on board an aircraft. The Ministry has advised airlines and travelling public not to turn on or charge the said mobile during flights. This has been done in light of several incidents globally, involving the battery of Samsung Galaxy Note 7. Passengers have also been advised not to stow them in their checked in baggage.”
In a statement, Samsung said, “We are aware of an incident involving one of our devices. At Samsung, customer safety is our highest priority. We are in touch with relevant authorities to gather more information and are looking into the matter.”