Portable chargers, commonly known as power banks, work on lithium-ion batteries and pose serious fire hazards in planes, even if many people are not aware of the risks (or chose to ignore the safety rules). But the passengers from a Pegasus Airlines flight between Ankara and Izmir, in Turkey, will probably never forget about it as they were evacuated from the plane after a power bank from a passenger started emitting smoke.
Turkiye Today reports that the plane was about to depart from Ankara's Esenboga Airport and was preparing to operate its scheduled flight to Izmir when smoke started to appear from a portable charger belonging to a passenger.
The plane never took off and was diverted on land, and all passengers were evacuated as a precaution. There were no injuries no damage to the plane, but obviously an annoying and significant delay for the passengers.
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The International Civil Aviation Organization imposed new specifications last March to "enhance safety and peace of mind for passengers and airlines alike", limiting the number of such devices each passengers can take with them to two, and forbidding using them during the flight (although crew will be allowed to use them).
Power banks beyond 160 Wh are not allowed on any plane, and in any case, all power banks, no matter the power, cannot be placed on checked luggage, only on hand luggage. Last month, an EasyJet flight from Hurghada in Egypt to London Luton changed course to land in Rome because a passenger told crew members that a portable charger was in the aircraft's hold, reported BBC...