SWISS Airbus A330 flight LX-16 from Zurich to New York diverts to Bangor after cabin smoke

What happened on SWISS flight LX-16

A SWISS Airbus A330 operating flight LX-16 from Zurich to New York had to make an unplanned landing at Bangor Airport in the United States after smoke appeared in the cabin.

The aircraft, registered HB-JHK, departed Zurich at 10:25 and had been in the air for more than seven hours when a wireless earphones charging case became wedged between a seat. The battery then overheated, which led to the smoke.

Response and aircraft inspection in Bangor

To protect passengers, the crew opted to divert to Bangor. SWISS dispatched a technical team to the US city to examine the aircraft, which later flew back to Zurich on Wednesday. There is no information on how passengers continued their journey to New York.

Wider concerns over lithium batteries on board

Several airlines have prohibited the use of power banks on board-among them SWISS and KLM-since the start of this year, citing the risk of overheating and fires.

Although the charging case involved here contains an internal battery with a lower capacity than a power bank, incidents linked to these types of devices have been occurring more frequently, prompting authorities to introduce a range of new measures in recent years.