Story from Jam Press (Plane Smoke) Pictured: Passengers on the smoke-filled plane. VIDEO: 'Shrieking' passengers left 'choking' as flight fills with smoke. Passengers have been left terrified after a cabin filled with smoke and allegedly left them struggling to breathe for 25 minutes. The horrifying incident took place aboard flight number SG 3735, a SpiceJet aircraft that took off from Goa, India. One of the passengers, Vivek Vishal, claimed: “SpiceJet risks people’s life. We were choking for 25 minutes and even oxygen masks didn’t deploy. “Strict action should be taken against such a negligent airline.” In a clip, a woman can be heard shouting: “stand down” repeatedly as beeps follow amid the smoke-filled plane. While they’re in complete darkness, she orders those aboard to “bend down, stay down” as she uses a dim torch to direct her requests. In another clip, multiple ambulances are shown at the rain-heavy scene, as a man can be seen speaking on the phone. Members of the crew with hi-vis jackets are spotted waiting at the side of the runway with wheelchairs in preparation for assistance. It’s believed at least 86 people were on board the aircraft, which had to carry out a full emergency landing due to the malfunction. According to local reports, passengers were soon evacuated after the landing in Hyderabad, India, where the pilot informed air-traffic control about the incident. Ground staff were allegedly asked to put all precautions into place, in a bid to avoid any further incidents. It’s been reported that crew on board told passengers to “start praying” due to the panic-inducing ordeal – but a spokesman for the airline has denied these claims. Another passenger, Srikanth Mulupala, claimed: “The crew members told us to pray to God and pray for our families – it was mortifying. “Many of my co-passengers panicked and started shrieking.” One of the passengers, who has not been named, also alleges that the cre
Smoke from a laptop’s lithium-ion battery sparked panic on an American Airlines plane Friday at San Francisco International Airport, forcing an emergency evacuation. In footage shared with news outlets, flight attendants can be heard urgently ordering passengers off the jet, but some travelers briefly hesitate or reach for carry-on bags before abandoning them. “Leave everything behind,” one crew member shouts on the clip (www.foxbusiness.com) as passengers rush down the aisle. The scene unfolded as American Airlines Flight 2045 – an Airbus A321 bound for Miami – was preparing to depart around midday. Smoke began filling the cabin as crew members discovered a fire in a passenger’s bag.
Smoke from Laptop Triggers Emergency Evacuation
Multiple news reports show the evacuation unfolded in seconds. According to NBC Bay Area and the airline, crew members “reported smoke” coming from a laptop inside a traveler’s bag while passengers were boarding (www.nbclosangeles.com) (abc7news.com). American Airlines confirmed that staff quickly pulled the smoking bag out and helped everyone off the plane (www.nbclosangeles.com) (abc7news.com). The city’s fire department later identified the source as a lithium-ion battery in a laptop. San Francisco firefighters said they extinguished the device on the ground, noting that “a lithium-ion battery inside a laptop” had sparked the smoke (abc7news.com). Fire crews emphasized that the safest way to cool such a fire is to immerse the laptop in water (abc7news.com), advice they applied after retrieving the device from the cabin.
Eyewitnesses describe a chaotic stampede. Passenger Carlos Leyva told KTVU-Fox2 that people “started screaming ‘Fire in the back!’ ” as they saw flames or smoke toward the rear (abc7news.com). Many travelers “tried to run toward the same way we entered,” said Leyva, adding that passengers began pushing toward the forward exits (www.nbclosangeles.com). In the scramble, at least one bag can be seen abandoned on a seat (www.foxbusiness.com) as others poured out sideways and via the jet bridge. San Francisco Airport spokesperson Doug Yakel said passengers used emergency slides to get off, and the remaining travelers later deplaned via the jetway (www.cbsnews.com).
Passengers Defy Crew Instructions Over Luggage
Video of the evacuation – widely circulated on social media – shows crew repeatedly warning fliers: “Come this way, leave everything,” one flight attendant shouts as people surge toward the door (www.foxbusiness.com). In the clip, a woman lingers by an overhead bin, bent over her belongings even as an attendant yells “go, go, go” in the background (www.foxbusiness.com). At least one other person appears to be reaching into a bin to pull out a bag. “A lot of us were yelling at people, ‘Get out now! Don’t try to grab your bag – just get out now. There’s no time for that,’ ” passenger Leyva later told KTVU (www.foxbusiness.com). His plea reflects the widely shared message from aviation safety officials: in an emergency, luggage must be left behind to save lives. As one travel blog put it, “If you stop in the aisle to grab something … you’re blocking everyone behind you from moving towards the exit” (qz.com). Passengers boarding Flight 2045 quickly learned this lesson the hard way.
Officials Confirm Cause, Injuries
American Airlines said the fire originated from “smoke reported from inside a customer’s bag” during boarding, and officials confirmed the bag was swiftly removed by crew (www.nbclosangeles.com) (abc7news.com). The evacuation was declared a mayday incident by the pilots before anyone departed. Banners and monitors at the gate displayed alerts as emergency crews converged. Three people were reported injured during the evacuation, all with minor burns or bruises. (www.wingsmagazine.com) (www.cbsnews.com) One passenger was taken to the hospital; two others were treated on-site by first responders (www.wingsmagazine.com). The FAA said it will investigate the incident, as it does with any evacuation under Part 121 rules (www.wingsmagazine.com). Crews are focused on learning exactly what caused the laptop to ignite, though officials stress the immediate priority was passenger safety.
No one was seriously hurt, and the evacuated aircraft was taken out of service. American Airlines later rebooked all 172 passengers on new flights. In a statement, the carrier thanked its crew for acting “professionally” and apologized for the distress and inconvenience (abc7news.com). The episode serves as a stark reminder of a known hazard: lithium-ion batteries have triggered in-flight fires in the past (www.thestreet.com). Federal regulations require that spare batteries be carried in the cabin and not damaged. Still, this incident underscores how quickly even a small device can endanger a flight. Aviation experts say passengers should treat every evacuation order as immediate and absolute. As one blogger put it, evacuation drills are based on leaving everything behind. In reality, however well-intentioned, grabbing a purse or laptop can literally block the exit for everyone else. This chaotic scene at SFO was a cautionary example of why those rules exist.
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