Lithium battery stored in Air China passenger’s case explodes into flames on flight

A fire broke out on an Air China flight when a lithium battery stored in a passenger’s carry-on luggage burst into flames. Footage shows an overhead compartment ablaze as panicked passengers flag down the cabin crew who rushed down the aisle towards the fire. The flight from Hangzhou, China to Incheon, South Korea on Saturday (18 October) was forced to make an emergency landing in Shanghai. “A lithium battery spontaneously ignited in a passenger's carry-on luggage stored in the overhead bin on flight CA139,” the airline said in a statement on the Chinese social media platform Weibo. “The crew immediately handled the situation according to procedures, and no one was injured,” the airline added.