Lithium-ion batteries are all around us including in smartphones, laptops, headphones, tablets, e-cigarettes, and portable chargers. Despite their advantages, they pose various safety considerations including a risk to aviation safety. On both cargo and passenger aircraft, these batteries have caused events involving smoke, fire, and/or extreme heat. According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), in 2025, 96 incidents occurred—the highest number ever recorded.
Passenger Aircraft
Of the 96 cases confirmed in 2025, 82 occurred on passenger aircraft. They are broken down by category, with the number for each noted below:
- Battery Pack/Battery: 26
- E-Cigarette/Vape Device: 23
- Cellular Phone: 20
- Other Electronic Device: 8
- Laptop: 5
Many of these incidents involved overheating and/or smoking. In some cases, aircraft that were taxiing had to return to the gate and experienced delays. In others, the events occurred in-flight and the devices that were overheating were placed in thermal containment bags, and the flight was able to continue to its destination without further issue.
Some of the occurrences were more serious and resulted in fires. Most were small and were managed by using an extinguisher and/or placing the device in water to cool it. In several cases involving fires, passengers and/or crew members had to be treated for fire-related injuries including burns and smoke inhalation, and there was also damage to the aircraft causing the flight to be delayed or diverted.
In one case, a passenger’s checked luggage containing multiple lithium-ion battery powered personal electronic devices caught fire, spreading to several adjacent pieces of luggage. Emergency personnel responded and extinguished the fire, and there was no report of injury or damage to the aircraft. In another event, a passenger’s bag containing lithium-ion batteries that had been placed in the cargo compartment caught fire. It also was extinguished without damage to the aircraft, but it did result in a flight delay.
Cargo Aircraft
In 2025, there were 14 aviation incidents related to cargo aircraft with their breakdown by category summarized below:
- Battery Pack/Battery: 7
- Laptop: 3
- Other Electronic Device: 3
- Cell Phone: 1
All of them occurred during ground handling processes at either an airport or cargo facility (e.g., FedEx, UPS). The majority involved a package containing either lithium batteries, cell phones, laptops, or other personal electronic devices that resulted in the package smoking. In several cases, the batteries or the electronic device caused a fire and required an emergency response to extinguish it. Fortunately, none of the occurrences resulted in injury or property damage, other than to the package itself.
In response to the increasing number of air incidents, the FAA recently issued a Safety Alert for Operators, SAFO 25002—Managing the Risks of Lithium Batteries Carried by Passengers and Crewmembers. It supplements existing FAA resources on lithium battery transport as well as PackSafe guidelines.
Airline-related recommendations from these publications include the following:
- Restrict spare batteries to the aircraft cabin, limit their amount, and mandate terminal protection.
- Provide passengers and crew members with information on the safe handling and storge of lithium batteries and the devices that contain them, including how to prevent them from being crushed or damaged.
- Assess aircraft safety equipment, such as fire extinguishers, water sources, and fire containment products to ensure they have the capability to mitigate onboard fires.
- Review procedures that minimize potential smoke inhalation by passengers and crewmembers.
Data from the UL Standards & Engagement Thermal Runaway Incident Program (TRIP) show that the average passenger brings four rechargeable devices powered by lithium-ion batteries onboard with them each time they travel. With more rechargeable devices being carried onto airplanes, this aviation safety risk must continue to be the focus of regulators, airlines, and passengers alike.
For more information on reducing the risks of lithium-ion batteries, please check out our Lithium-Ion Battery Safety: What You Should Know blog, our Are Burns from Personal Lithium Batteries OSHA Recordable blog, or contact us!
This blog was written by Beth Graham, Safety Partners’ Director of Quality, Research, and Training.
