Qantas B744 near New York on Jun 21st 2016, smart phone erupts in fire

Last Update: September 28, 2016 / 15:34:01 GMT/Zulu time

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Photo of Qantas VH-OJS, Boeing 747-400 — Qantas VH-OJS, Boeing 747-400 (Photo credit: m-takagi / Flickr / License: CC by)

Incident Facts

Date of incident
Jun 21, 2016

Classification
Incident

Airline
Qantas

Flight number
QF-11

Departure
Los Angeles, United States

Destination
New York JFK, United States

Aircraft Registration
VH-OJS

Aircraft Type
Boeing 747-400

ICAO Type Designator
B744

A Qantas Boeing 747-400, registration VH-OJS performing flight QF-11 from Los Angeles,CA to New York JFK,NY (USA), was enroute at FL370 about 270nm west of New York about 4 hours into the flight when a passenger's smart phone, that had falled into the passenger seat's reclining mechanism, was crushed when the seat was moved. The battery of that crushed smartphone erupted in fire, which was extinguished by cabin crew. The aircraft continued to New York for a safe landing about 45 minutes later.

Australia's TSB announced they have opened an investigation into the occurrence rated a serious incident, a report is expected within several months.

On Sep 28th 2016 the ATSB released their final report, see our editorial remarks below, releasing following safety message:

This incident serves as an excellent example of an effective response to an emergency situation. The cabin crew quickly implemented the basic fire drill procedure. This defined the roles and responsibilities of the responding crew, enabling a rapid and coordinated response to the incident using all available resources. As a result, the incident was quickly and effectively contained. The effective implementation of this procedure also ensured the flight crew were kept informed as the situation developed.

This incident also highlights the hazards of transporting lithium-ion battery powered PEDs aboard aircraft. The Civil Aviation Safety Authority has released information on the safe carriage of lithium type battery powered devices aboard aircraft in the web page: Travelling safely with batteries and pamphlet: Is your luggage safe?

The ATSB described the events on board:

On 21 June 2016, a Qantas Airways Boeing 747-438 aircraft, registered VH-OJS, operated flight QF11 from Los Angeles, California, United States to New York, New York, United States.

At about 0700 Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), a cabin crewmember responded to a request for assistance from a passenger seated in business class seat 3A. The passenger advised the crewmember of a missing personal electronic device (PED). The PED was identified as containing a lithium type battery. The crewmember, along with the passenger, searched around the seat for the missing PED. While searching, the seat position was moved. As the seat moved, the passenger in the next seat observed the PED within the seat mechanism. The seat was then inadvertently moved, resulting in the PED being crushed (Figure 1). The crushed PED immediately began hissing and emitting smoke. Moments later, the PED ignited. A second crewmember then initiated the basic fire drill.

The second crewmember obtained a fire extinguisher, and as they proceeded toward seat 3A, they advised a third crewmember of the incident and requested assistance. This crewmember also obtained a fire extinguisher, and proceeded toward seat 3A. The customer service manager (CSM) and another crewmember observed the activity and also followed, providing additional support.

When the cabin crewmembers carrying fire extinguishers arrived at seat 3A, they observed an orange glow emanating from the seat. A crewmember discharged a fire extinguisher into the seat, extinguishing the glow. At this time, the CSM acted as a communicator with the flight crew to inform them and keep them updated on the incident.

After confirming the PED fire had been extinguished, the cabin crew attempted to remove the PED in order to place the device in water, in accordance with lithium type battery fire procedures. The PED could not be removed without further damage and risk of fire. Therefore, the cabin crew elected to leave the device in place and position a crewmember with a fire extinguisher near seat 3A for the remainder of the flight. About 10–15 minutes after the incident, this crewmember identified further heat coming from the crushed PED. They again discharged the fire extinguisher onto the PED, eliminating the heat.

After confirming the incident was contained, the CSM advised the captain that the situation was under control. The captain discussed the incident with the first officer, and considered the event had been dealt with appropriately. The flight proceeded to New York and landed about 40 minutes later without further incident.

Editorial Message: There is a lot of confusion around this occurrence. This coverage originally read under the headline "Incident: Qantas B744 over Pacific Ocean on Jun 21st 2016, smart phone erupts in fire":

A Qantas Boeing 747-400, registration VH-OJS performing flight QF-11 from Sydney,NS (Australia) to Los Angeles,CA (USA), was enroute at FL340 over the Pacific Ocean near Kiribati Island (about N0 W162) about 6.5 hours into the flight when a passenger's smart phone, that had falled into the passenger seat's reclining mechanism, was crushed when the seat was moved. The battery of that crushed smartphone erupted in fire, which was extinguished by cabin crew. The aircraft continued to Los Angeles for a safe landing about 6.5 hours later.

This coverage was based on ATSB's initial message which reported the aircraft was on its flight from Sydney to Los Angeles about 6.5 hours into the flight, which coincided with radar data. While retaining the original time stamp of Jun 21st 2016 at 07:00Z the final report now states however that the aircraft was on its flight from Los Angeles to New York about 270nm west of New York, which however is in conflict with radar data showing the aircraft near Kiribati Island at that time. The 747 reached the position 270nm west of New York on Jun 21st 2016 at 20:00Z.