Emergency Evacuation at Chandigarh Airport After Passenger's Power Bank Catches Fire
All customers have been safely moved to the terminal and are being attended to by the team to ensure their well-being, the spokesperson said
HYDERABAD: A power bank caught fire inside an IndiGo flight from Hyderabad after it landed at Chandigarh, which prompted an emergency evacuation of 198 passengers and six crew at the airport. No one was injured, according to the aviation regulartor though a passenger said his wife had suffered a fracture during the evacuation.
An emergency evacuation involves the use of slides to help passengers clear stricken aircraft.
An Airbus 321 aircraft operating Flight 6E 108 from Hyderabad had landed at Chandigarh and was stationary when smoke was noticed inside the cabin. Reports indicate the device ignited near a seat pocket around Row 39 and smoke spread quickly. The cabin crew used fire extinguishers and brought the situation under control.
An evacuation was carried out soon after as a precaution. All slides were deployed and passengers exited onto the tarmac. Minor injuries were reported during the process.
“After landing during taxi into the bay at Chandigarh, a power bank kept in a pouch in the seat pocket by a passenger seated on 39C caught fire. Aircraft was stopped in the bay,” aviation watchdog Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said in a statement.
The regulator said cabin crew used two fire extinguisher bottles to put out the fire, and all six slides of the aircraft were deployed to evacuate the passengers. The DGCA said that no passenger injury has been reported.
IndiGo confirmed the sequence in a statement to the media. “On 5 May 2026, while IndiGo flight 6E 108 from Hyderabad to Chandigarh was stationary after landing, an incident involving a customer's personal electronic equipment catching fire was reported,” the airline said. “In the interest of safety, an immediate evacuation was carried out… all customers have been safely moved to the terminal,” it added, and said the aircraft would undergo checks before returning to service.
Aviation rules in India require power banks to be carried only in cabin baggage and kept within reach, not in overhead bins, and restrict their use for charging devices during flights due to fire risk. Airlines, including IndiGo, allow batteries up to prescribed limits and prohibit damaged or loose units.
Similar incidents internationally have led to tighter rules on power banks and lithium batteries. In 2025, an Air Busan aircraft caught fire that began in a power bank in an overhead bin while at the gate and damaged the aircraft. Further this year, in April itself, a Lufthansa flight from Munich to Los Angeles diverted mid-air after a portable charger caught fire.
In November last year, DGCA advised airlines to prohibit the use of power banks for charging portable electronic devices during flight, in view of safety concerns arising from lithium battery-related incidents.
A passenger who was on board the aircraft told the media that the incident took place as soon as the flight had landed.
The passenger said his wife, who was also on the flight, suffered a twisted ankle during the evacuation of passengers. He also mentioned that his wife and other passengers were evacuated using sliders.
According to him, smoke started to come out from the power bank of a person on the last seat, and the air hostess used a fire extinguisher to put out the fire. But a lot of smoke filled up inside the plane, and there was panic, he added.
The air hostess tried to calm the passengers, but there was panic, the passenger said, adding that emergency gates were opened and evacuation was carried out.
Sliders were put up to help passengers come down. There were children and elderly people on board the plane, he said.
Further, the passenger said his wife was taken to a hospital in Zirakpur, where doctors informed them that she had suffered multiple fractures and surgery could be required.
