Laptop Battery Catches Fire Aboard American Airlines Flight to Dallas; Passenger Treated at Scene

Flight attendants used a thermal containment bag to smother a laptop fire before the American Airlines jet landed safely at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport.

Rudy Blalock

Published: 8/25/2026, 8:33:20 AM EDT

Laptop Battery Catches Fire Aboard American Airlines Flight to Dallas; Passenger Treated at Scene — An American Airlines Boeing 737 MAX airplane takes off on a test flight from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport in Dallas, Texas, on Dec. 2, 2020. (Cooper Neill/AFP via Getty Images)

An American Airlines flight bound for Dallas landed safely Friday evening after a passenger's laptop battery caught fire mid-cabin, prompting airline crew to put out the blaze and emergency crews to meet the plane on arrival.

American Airlines Flight 2398 was on approach to Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) after departing Atlanta when its crew radioed that a laptop battery had ignited on board, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said in a statement to media outlets.

Flight attendants quickly smothered the flames using a thermal containment bag, a device designed to isolate burning lithium batteries, the agency said.

The Airbus A321 touched down safely at DFW around 6:55 p.m. local time, and the agency said it is now investigating the incident.

According to air traffic control audio, the flight's pilot told controllers the fire had injured several people on board before the plane landed.

"I think we have about four to five passengers that were burned by the laptop," the pilot said.

The pilot also said the device had been brought under control roughly in the middle of the cabin and asked ground staff how boarding crews should proceed once the plane parked at the gate.

American Airlines separately said in a statement to media outlets that smoke was reported coming from a customer's device as the plane was landing.

"American Airlines flight 2398 landed safely at DFW after reports of smoke from a customer's device during landing. We thank our crew for their professionalism and swift response to quickly contain the device," a company spokesperson said.

The jet taxied to the gate under its own power, where emergency personnel were waiting in line with standard protocol.

One passenger was treated for injuries at the scene and released, the airline said, a detail confirmed by DFW airport officials, who said in their own statement that emergency crews met the flight and treated one patient before releasing that person.

Why Lithium Batteries Pose a Risk

All lithium-ion batteries carry some risk of overheating through a process called thermal runaway, which can strike without warning if a battery is damaged, overcharged, exposed to water or improperly packed, or simply due to a manufacturing flaw, according to the FAA's PackSafe guidance.

Flight crews are trained specifically to recognize and respond to in-cabin lithium battery fires, and the FAA advises passengers to alert crew immediately if a device begins overheating, expanding, smoking, or burning.

Federal rules also require that spare lithium batteries be carried only in carry-on bags, with terminals protected against short-circuiting.

Spokespersons for the FAA, American Airlines, and DFW did not immediately respond to a request for comment when reached outside regular business hours Monday.