A cabin fire sparked by a cellphone battery pack forced an Alaska Airlines flight to make an emergency landing shortly after takeoff.
WICHITA, Kan. – There was panic in the sky just minutes after a plane took off from Wichita , Kansas, on Sunday. An Alaska Airlines flight bound for Seattle was forced to make an emergency landing after a fire broke out inside the cabin.
Seventy-six passengers on Alaska Airlines flight 2117 left Wichita’s Dwight D. Eisenhower Airport and returned less than a half-hour later after a fire started on board.“She had an external battery charger pack,” passenger Leana Stickler described. “I was right next to her and it was just sitting in her lap, not being played with, not being touched, and it exploded.” Stickler said the flame was about 1 foot tall, and it burned a woman’s arms and legs before she tossed it into the aisle.Some of the scary moments were caught on video by passenger Melissa Harris Herrero.“Oh, terror. I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh, we’re going to crash,’” Soom said. “The flight attendants came running back with a fire extinguisher and put it out.”Some passengers said it was difficult to breathe because the smoke was so thick. Others reported nausea and headaches after inhaling it. “I know my mom I’m traveling with, she has a headache and she’s nauseous, but we’re OK,” Stickler said.Alaska Airlines said the woman who owned the power bank received medical attention after the plane landed.The airport’s statement said in part, “While external batteries are allowed in the airplane cabin, they can experience ‘thermal runaway,’ a dangerous chain reaction that can lead to fires.” “It’s scary. It’s like one of those things that you always hear about, but never expect it to actually happen,” Stickler said.Woman hit and killed by car in Anchorage, first pedestrian death of 2026Missing snowmachiner in Western Alaska rescued ‘I heard her screaming’: Rapid deportation case may signal change of pace in Alaska immigration proceedingsAlaska Teens Against Abuse expands statewide push during Teen Dating Violence Awareness MonthUS women’s gold medal-winning team declines invitation from Trump to attend State of Union address
Airlines Seattle Wichita Flight Emergency Landing Fire Video Power Battery Powerbank
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