Qantas A380 alert over smoking mobile phone in business class

Passengers reported seeing flight attendants running through a Los Angeles to Melbourne A380 with fire extinguishers as a burnt rubber smell permeated cabins.

A mobile phone crushed in a Qantas business class seat in an Airbus A380 aircraft has caused an alert.

A smoking mobile phone crushed in a business class seat almost forced the diversion of a Qantas flight from Los Angeles to Melbourne this morning.

Qantas confirmed the captain of flight QF94 considered landing at Sydney Airport, when the phone was crushed in the seat mechanism and began emitting a burning smell.

Passengers reported seeing flight attendants running through the A380 with fire extinguishers as a burnt rubber smell permeated the cabins.

When the incident was contained, the captain decided to continue to Melbourne, landing 35-minutes behind schedule at 8.05am.

A Qantas spokesman said the crew was trained to handle such situations and the crew on-board followed all the correct procedures.

“The incident shows why we ask passengers to seek help from our cabin crew in retrieving their mobile phones,” he said.

An Australian Transport Safety Bureau investigation in 2016 highlighted the hazards of transporting lithium-ion battery powered personal electronic devices aboard aircraft.

At that time, 22 such incidents had been reported including one on board a Qantas aircraft that resulted in a small fire.

The ATSB report praised the Qantas crew for their quick and effective response which contained the emergency.

Qantas aircraft seats are required to pass flammability tests, reducing any risk of a fire sparked by a crushed mobile phone from spreading.

Business class seats on Qantas planes must pass flammability tests.

The incident coincided with a new safety bulletin from the Civil Aviation Safety Authority on the management of lithium powered devices, which it warned were prone to “spontaneous ignition and explosion” if crushed or dropped.

The bulletin noted that most passengers carry up to six personal electronic devices, including three to four on their person and another one or two in checked baggage.

In the event of an exploding or igniting device, crew should “identify the item, apply firefighting procedure, remove power and douse the device in water”, the bulletin said.