An American Airlines passenger’s laptop caught fire mid-air in Flight 2398, originating from Atlanta, which later landed at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport without any serious incident.
The conversation between the airport traffic control (ATC) and the pilot of the plane reveals that at least five passengers were feared to have suffered burn injuries due to laptop blaze. 133 people were aboard the plane at the time of the incident.
The pilot can be heard saying, “Cabin fire in the back of the airplane. The flight attendants are trying to put it out now.”
The pilot added, “I think we have about four to five passengers that were burned by the laptop. The laptop is about mid-aircraft.”
However, the Dallas Airport later revealed that only one person from the flight was treated for injuries.
The carrier later expressed gratitude toward their crew for their “professionalism and swift response” to quickly contain the fire.
Although no official cause of the fire has been established yet, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) the lithium batteries used in laptops or other electronic devices pose a danger due to overheating.
The FAA warns that lithium-ion batteries can overheat and potentially cause smoke, fire or thermal runaway.
At least 56 lithium battery incidents on flights that involved smoke, fire or overheating have been reported in 2026 alone so far.
