An easyJet pilot and head of flight operations at the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), Glenn Bradley, has urged passengers not to pack a common electrical item—portable fans—in their hold luggage, due to the risk of lithium battery fires that can cause emergency landings.
Incident Highlights Danger
Eleven days ago, passengers aboard a British Airways Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner flying from London Heathrow to Las Vegas noticed an acrid smell. A blaze had broken out in the cabin, triggered by a lithium battery. The fire scorched the inside of the jet before crew extinguished it. Clark County Fire Department responders met the singed plane on the tarmac.
The fire was one of 644 such incidents on planes recorded by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the past 20 years, with the global figure stretching into the thousands.
Other Incidents
On January 28 last year, 176 passengers were evacuated from Air Busan Flight 391 when a battery blaze completely destroyed the plane as it taxied for take-off at Gimhae International Airport. Three were injured.
Lithium batteries are used six times more now than in 2020, raising the risk of fire. They can ignite due to thermal runaway, where a damaged or short-circuited cell rapidly generates heat, creating a chain reaction that releases extreme heat. This can be triggered by being crushed or overcharged.
Pilot's Warning
Many passengers know that items containing lithium batteries, such as phones, power banks, and vapes, must be stored in hand luggage. However, less obvious gadgets can slip into hold luggage. Glenn Bradley explained: "The batteries are in everything, including portable fans. Lithium batteries in the hold are the most dangerous thing."
While flight attendants are trained to put out cabin fires, accessing luggage in the hold is impossible during a flight. "We all carry about four of these batteries when we fly, so on a plane there could be a thousand. The fact is, they don't explode on a daily basis, but if they do, we want to be able to manage them," he added.
Real-World Consequences
If a passenger realises they have left a battery-containing item in their hold luggage, they should immediately tell crew. When that happened on a UK-bound easyJet flight in May, the plane was diverted to Rome. The captain judged the power bank charging in a passenger's luggage to be too dangerous to ignore.
Glenn spoke with the Mirror as part of a CAA safety campaign. Passengers are urged to “pack right for a safe flight” by taking their batteries in the cabin with them.
What Passengers Should Do
- Take items like mobile phones, vapes, and power banks on board with you.
- Never charge a power bank on a flight.
- Turn off laptops completely if they are to be placed in checked bags.
Getting it wrong could lead to bags being removed from the flight, causing significant delays, or even a fire that may be impossible to contain.
Giancarlo Buono, director of aviation safety at the CAA, said: “Flying is by far the safest way to travel and we want to keep it that way. Pack right for a safe flight, and that means don’t put your batteries in your checked bag. Take them into the cabin with you. This simple tip will make your flight safer for you, and the other passengers you’re flying with.”
Rising Incidents
CAA figures show reports of overheating or malfunctioning passenger devices nearly doubled between 2024 and 2025, following a 98% year-on-year increase. Cases of lithium battery-powered devices being incorrectly packed in checked baggage also rose by 91% in 2025.
