Flight diverted because of portable battery

Added: 2026-06-02

[00:00:00]A portable battery like this one caused an emergency landing. An EasyJet flight to London had to divert to Rome last Tuesday because a passenger told the crew that their portable battery was in their checked bag and charging their phone. EasyJet says the captain made that call as a precaution. The concern is something called a thermal runaway.

[00:00:20]That's when lithium-ion batteries overheat uncontrollably. The FAA showed me the truly [music] explosive results at its lab in Atlantic City last year.

[00:00:33]Wow. Airlines are scrambling to keep up with this problem. In-flight fires of portable [music] batteries are happening more all the time. The best rule of thumb is to keep your portable batteries in your carry-on bags and within reach in case something does go wrong.