Fire on EasyJet mid-flight caused by e-cigarette

EasyJet flight forced into U-turn following a fire caused by an e-cigarette.

An EasyJet flight from Geneva to Amsterdam was forced into an emergency U-turn following a fire caused by an e-cigarette stored in a passenger’s hand luggage.

Mid-way through the flight a passenger noticed smoke coming out of one of the overhead storage units.

According to eyewitnesses, a group of passengers took the flaming bag from the overhead storage and threw it on the floor where other passengers stamped the fire out.

A passenger on the plane told the Swiss newspaper RTS: “It seems like it lasts forever when it’s really only a few seconds and everything was extinguished very quickly. There is this smell that takes to the throat and we panic, because ‘we’re stuck on a plane’.”

The plane returned to Geneva and the flight was rescheduled for the next day.

The budget airline said in a statement: “The incident will be the subject of a formal investigation, in accordance with the procedures”. The company added that “the safety of our passengers and crew is our first priority”.

EasyJet does have restrictions on the carrying of e-cigarettes and their batteries onboard with their policy insisting they be stored in the cabin and not the hold.