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| Samsung Galaxy Note 2 |
A Samsung smartphone stored in an overhead baggage compartment on an Indian plane emitted smoke in mid-flight on Friday. India's aviation regulator has confirmed, due to the prompt action of cabin crew there was no damage and the aircraft landed safely
Passengers on board an IndiGo flight smelled and saw smoke coming from the overhead baggage bin, alerted cabin crew who opened it up and were met with sparks and acrid smoke coming from a Samsung Galaxy Note 2 phone. The airline, is owned by InterGlobe Aviation,
Flight crew used a fire extinguisher and then put the phone in a container filled with water. The IndiGo flight was on its way to Chennai from Singapore.
The regulator formally described the incident as a suspected fire however the airline said there had been no fire.
Samsung had earlier issued a worldwide recall for its new Note 7 smartphone this month due to faulty batteries causing the device to catch fire while charging and in normal use.
There have been no previous reports of problems with the Note 2 model, first released in 2012. Samsung is looking into Friday's incident, a company spokesman said: "We are in touch with relevant authorities to gather more information."
India's aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), is to send an advisory to airlines warning passengers to keep all Samsung Note smartphones switched off during flights or avoid carrying the phones on commercial jets altogether, a spokesman said.
The DGCA has called Samsung representatives to its office in New Delhi on Monday to discuss the incident.
Regulators and airlines in several countries, including the United States and China, have now issued a series of warnings to air travellers to keep Samsung Galaxy Note 7 phones turned off and unplugged during flights.
Asked about the incident in India, a spokesman for Europe’s air safety regulator, the European Aviation Safety Agency, referred to previous guidance stating passengers should inform cabin crew if any electronic device is damaged, hot, produces smoke, is lost, or falls into the seats.
It has advised airlines to tell passengers not to turn on or charge their Galaxy Note 7s when on board.
Source: Reuters, CNS, CompUni, Samsung
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