Devices powered by lithium-ion batteries are overheating more often during airline flights and passengers often put them in checked bags that go into the cargo hold, where a fire might not be detected as quickly.
Overheating incidents rose 28% from 2019 to 2023, although such events remain relatively rare, UL Standards & Engagement said in a report released Monday.
E-cigarettes overheated more often than any other device, according to the report.
In 60% of the cases, the overheating — called thermal runaway — happened near the seat of the passenger who brought the device on board.
In July, a smoking laptop in a passenger’s bag led to the evacuation of a plane awaiting takeoff at San Francisco International Airport. Last year, a flight from Dallas to Orlando, Florida, made an emergency landing in Jacksonville, Florida, after a battery caught fire in an overhead bin.
More than one-quarter of passengers surveyed for the study said they put vaping cigarettes and portable chargers in checked bags. That is against federal rules.
The Transportation Security Administration prohibits e-cigarettes and chargers and power banks with lithium-ion batteries in checked bags but allows them in carry-on bags. The rule exists precisely because fires in the cargo hold might be harder to detect and extinguish.
UL Standards & Engagement, part of a safety-science company once known as Underwriters Laboratories, said it based its findings on data from 35 passenger and cargo airlines including nine of the 10 leading U.S. passenger carriers.
The Federal Aviation Administration reports 37 thermal-runaway incidents on planes this year, through Aug. 15. There were 77 reports last year, a 71% increase over 2019, according to the FAA numbers.
Considering that airlines operate about 180,000 U.S. flights each week, incidents in the air are relatively uncommon, and lithium batteries can overheat anywhere.
“We also know that one of these thermal-runaway incidents at 40,000 feet does present unique risks,” said UL’s David Wroth.
Those risks have been known for many years.
After cargo planes carrying loads of lithium-ion batteries crashed in 2010 and 2011, the United Nations' aviation organization considered restricting such shipments but rejected tougher standards. Opponents, including airlines, argued that the decision on whether to accept battery shipments should be left up to the carriers, and some no longer take bulk battery shipments.
The most common lithium-ion-powered devices on planes are phones, laptops, wireless headphones and tablets. About 35% of reported overheating incidents involved e-cigarettes, and 16% involved power banks.
Travelers use kiosks to check in for flights in the Delta Airlines ticketing area at the Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
FILE - In this June 19, 2014 file photo, baggage carts are towed to the Boeing 737 jet at Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport in Little Rock, Ark., June 19, 2014. Devices powered by lithium-ion batteries are overheating more often during airline flights and passengers often put them in checked bags that go into the cargo hold, where a fire might not be detected as quickly. (AP Photo/Danny Johnston, File)
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Saquon Barkley had at least a first down, maybe even a touchdown, in his grasp that would have sealed the Eagles' win in their home opener.
Barkley instead bobbled a reception and couldn't hold on to Jalen Hurts' short pass. It was one giant drop on third down at Atlanta's 10-yard line with 1:46 left in the game that stopped the clock late and forced the Eagles to settle for a field goal.
Barkley's botch was the opening the Atlanta Falcons needed to pull off the stunner with the kind of flawless drive the Eagles couldn't duplicate. Kirk Cousins capped the winning drive with a touchdown pass to Drake London and Atlanta stunned Philadelphia 22-21 in its home opener on Monday night.
“I dropped the ball,” Barkley said plainly. “Let my team down today. Shouldn’t have put the defense in that position. If I make the catch, game’s over."
Barkley and Hurts, who had put the Eagles ahead 18-15 on a 1-yard tush-push touchdown in the fourth, had a brief postgame conversation in the locker room.
The message was simple: Hurts still had Barkley's back.
“He's going to trust me every time in that situation,” Barkley said.
After Barkley's drop, Jake Elliott kicked a 28-yard field goal rather than the Eagles going for the score on fourth down.
“We wanted to go up six points. It didn't work,” coach Nick Sirianni said. “I wanted them to be down and touchdown and see if they could drive the field. And they did.”
With a three-year deal for $26 million guaranteed, Barkley is the highest-paid running back in franchise history. The 27-year-old former New York Giant did have a knack for dropping the ball when he played for the NFC East rival.
“I trust him every day of the week to make a play,” Hurts said. “Just like everybody else. We'll be better for it.”
Maybe next time, the Eagles will simply trust Barkley enough to just rush for the first down.
Even after London torched cornerback Darius Slay and scored, the Eagles still had 34 seconds to at least drive into field goal territory for Elliott. Hurts instead had his pass picked off by Jessie Bates III that ended all hope of Philadelphia's own amazing comeback.
“The intent of that play was to go down the field,” Sirianni said. “He took a chance and the guy made a good play.”
Much like Barkley, Slay took the heat for the loss after he let London beat him for the winning TD.
“That’s on me Philly!! I owe yall one. DAMN!!!!!” Slay wrote on social media.
A year after a 10-1 start, the Eagles are already 1-1 with games against undefeated teams New Orleans and Tampa Bay on deck.
Barkley ran for 95 yards in his home debut at week after a week after he rushed for 109 yards and scored three touchdowns against Green Bay. Eagles fans booed when the opening drive of the game ended without Barkley touching the ball. Led by Hollywood star Bradley Cooper, Eagles fans went wild when he had consecutive 9-yard runs to open the second drive.
Barkley's steady success wouldn't stick.
The defense couldn't smother the long play against Cousins and the defense for all 60 minutes.
Under new defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, the Eagles established an early knack for allowing long drives that end with three points instead of seven. Atlanta's Younghoe Koo kicked field goals of 39, 22 and 34 yards, the last one enough for a 9-7 lead in the third quarter. In their opener, the Eagles held the Packers to just three field goals when they drove inside the 20.
Cousins, signed to a four-year, $180 million contract in the offseason, came alive in the second half. Cousins connected with Darnell Mooney on a 41-yard TD pass that gave Atlanta a 15-10 lead. Cousins later hit Mooney for 21 and 26 yards on consecutive plays during the decisive drive.
“We can be beat, especially if we don't take advantage of our opportunities,” Eagles defensive end Brandon Graham said.
With No. 1 receiver A.J. Brown out with a hamstring injury, DeVonta Smith led the Eagles with seven catches for 76 yards and a score. Sirianni said he wasn't sure how long Brown would be out.
“Of course, he's definitely missed,” Hurts said. “It doesn't change the trust I have in everybody else to step up. We just didn't meet the moment. It wasn't for us tonight."
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
Atlanta Falcons safety Justin Simmons (31) stops Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley (26) during the second half of an NFL football game Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Former Philadelphia Eagles player Jason Kelce sits on the NFL ESPN Monday Night Football before an NFL football game between the Eagles and the Atlanta Falcons on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni and Kellen Moore, offensive coordinator react to a two-point conversion by Eagles running back Saquon Barkley during the second half of an NFL football game against the Atlanta Falcons on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley (26) falls with the ball near Atlanta Falcons cornerback Clark Phillips III, bottom, and Atlanta Falcons defensive end James Smith-Williams during the second half of an NFL football game Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley (26) catches a pass in front of Atlanta Falcons safety Jessie Bates III (3) during the second half of an NFL football game Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley (26) runs with the ball under pressure from Atlanta Falcons cornerback A.J. Terrell (24) and Atlanta Falcons safety Jessie Bates III during the second half of an NFL football game on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
