Passenger Device Ignites, Forces American Airlines Diversion

An American Airlines flight from Philadelphia to Phoenix diverted to Washington Dulles International Airport on Saturday morning when a passenger’s device started smoking. Flight 357 – an Airbus A321 – was carrying a total of 160 passengers and six crew members onboard, ABC reported. 

The flight terminated at around 11:50 a.m. with a safe landing at Dulles, where emergency personnel met the aircraft on the runway. American Airlines said the crew contained the device successfully prior to landing. The type of device has not been disclosed.

Passenger Adriana Novello told ABC News she was sleeping in an exit row when she woke to a flight attendant reaching for a fire extinguisher. “Then I started smelling smoke, and a lot of people on the plane were coughing,” she said. The FAA is investigating.