A United Airlines flight to New Jersey flipped Tuesday morning shortly after takeoff in San Diego after a first-class passenger’s external battery caught fire, injuring at least four people, according to San Diego Fire-Rescue.
The battery exploded in flames around 7:15 a.m. local time on Tuesday just 10 minutes from United Airlines Flight 2664 en route to Newark Liberty International Airport.
The passenger, who was in the plane’s first-class cabin, put the remote package into his cell phone upon takeoff. It was contained by the flight crew and placed in a fireproof bag.
“Our crew acted quickly to contain the device and medical personnel met the aircraft at the gate upon arrival,” United said in a statement. a statement. “We thank our crew for their prompt actions to prioritize the safety of everyone on board the aircraft.”
At least four passengers were taken to hospital, while two others were injured but refused transport to medical care. The rest of the flight’s passengers were medically examined, while United reported that “several” flight attendants had also been taken to hospital.
SDFD crews at SD Intl Airport in front of an aircraft that came in with an external battery pack on fire in the cabin. The flight crew prevented the fire from spreading to the cabin. Two patients transported to hospital and more are being examined. #battery fire pic.twitter.com/BL5MrBAGUO
— SDFD (@SDFD) February 7, 2023
A passenger, Caroline Lipinski, witnessed the incident and knew something was wrong when she saw smoke billowing from the first class cabin.
“[The passenger] threw something on the floor and it was a battery charger or something from his laptop, it burst into flames,” she said local point of sale CBS8. “There was smoke in the cabin. I was terrified.”
According to the flight tracking site FlightAwareFlight 2664 was airborne for just 44 minutes before making an emergency landing in San Diego.
Flight details for United 2664 via FlightAware
According to the Federal Aviation Agencylithium batteries “can be dangerous on airplanes if not packaged or shipped properly.”
The FAA is currently investigating the incident.
