Cellphone catches fire, scorches cabin of British Airways flight from London to Las Vegas
by Brad Matthews · The Washington TimesA British Airways flight from London to Las Vegas was able to land safely Monday after a cellphone caught fire and scorched the cabin.
British Airways Flight 271 was on its way from London Heathrow Airport to Harry Reid International Airport when the fire broke out, the Federal Aviation Administration said, according to CBS News. No injuries were reported, and the plane was not diverted.
Airport officials told KTNV-TV that British Airways called in an alert and that “fire was extinguished and the aircraft landed safely and taxied to the gate.”
A British Airways spokesperson told KTNV-TV that “the safety of our customers and crew is the highest priority, the flight landed safely and customers disembarked normally.”
Officials have not said what type of phone caught fire. As of Monday, there have been 38 lithium battery-related incidents involving extreme heat, fire or smoke on board passenger planes in 2026, according to an FAA database. Another two such incidents have taken place on cargo planes.
The FAA news account on X quote-posted the CBS News story and asked passengers to “please keep rechargeable devices in your carry-on, not checked baggage” and said that “if a device overheats or starts smoking, tell a flight attendant immediately.”
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