Cabin crew had to tackle flames at altitude after a passenger’s laptop caught fire during a Lufthansa flight from Los Angeles International Airport to Frankfurt, Germany.
The incident happened on board Lufthansa flight LH457 on Boxing Day.
A video was later circulated on social media; in a post shared on Instagram by @aflyguytravels, smoke can be seen filling the aircraft, before a female flight attendant checks an overhead locker and sprays a fire extinguisher towards the source. Inside the locker, a laptop had caught fire, causing the plumes of smoke.
The video appears to have been filmed by another passenger – in it, other crew members can also be seen taking action to put out the fire and keep people back from the smoke.
The flight was forced to divert to Chicago O’Hare International Airport.
Two cabin crew members suffered from smoke inhalation after the incident.
As stated on 27 December by Aero Inside: “The airline reported the aircraft diverted as a precaution after an overheated passenger laptop caused a small fire in the cabin, the fire was out by the time of landing.”
“The aircraft remained on the ground in Chicago for about four hours, then departed as flight LH-9925 to Frankfurt,” the article added.
Social media users were quick to comment underneath @aflyguytravels’ post, with one writing: “This is one of the reasons, as an airline employee, I always encourage passengers to carry laptops on board with them.”
“Kudos to this crew cause we all know fire is one of the worst emergencies we can face!”, another said.
The Instagram post’s caption finishes by highlighting: “For those that think flight attendants are there to just serve your food and drinks, please bookmark this video and remember to respect the crews’ safety instructions, they’re meant to keep you safe and alive during your time in the sky.”
Lufthansa told The Independent: “Lufthansa flight LH457 from Los Angeles to Frankfurt made an unscheduled landing at Chicago O’Hare Airport on Monday (26.12.2022) as a precautionary measure. The reason was a small fire onboard the cabin caused by a passenger’s overheated laptop.
“The small fire was extinguished in flight before its safe landing. Safety on board was not compromised at any time. None of the passengers on board were injured.
“Two flight attendants were treated onsite for smoke inhalation. Lufthansa regrets the inconvenience caused to passengers. The safety of passengers and crew has top priority at all times.”