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January 23, 2020

Thermal Runaway of battery

The Boeing 777 was en route from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol to Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia. En route, above the Andaman Sea, to the west of continental Southeast Asia, a sleeping passenger in a business class seat dropped his mobile telephone. When the passenger woke up, and placed the seat in the upright position, the telephone shattered. This caused overheating leading to what is known as thermal runaway of the lithium ion battery in the telephone. A considerable volume of smoke was released, which was concentrated in a small section of the cabin sealed off by curtains.
The captain decided to divert to Phuket International Airport in Thailand. The reason for this decision was the large volume of extinguishing water used and the possibility that the seat was still smouldering. The aircraft made a safe landing.
The airline in question is considering reviewing the protective equipment and the equipment available on board to fight fires caused by lithium-iron batteries. The airline is also investigating the effectiveness of existing passenger instructions for the adjustment of seats in relation to electronic devices that may end up trapped in the seat.
Source: Ducth Safety Board

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