Samsung Galaxy Note 2 catches fire on a plane in India

A Samsung Galaxy Note 2 smartphone caught fire mid-air on an IndiGo plane earlier today. The flight, 6E-054, was headed to Chennai from Singapore when the incident took place. The plane landed safely and none of the passengers were injured.

Passengers on the IndiGo flight reportedly noticed smell in the cabin and alerted the cabin crew on board. The crew identified smoke coming from an over-head bin and quickly relocated the passengers to other seats. The crew found a burning Galaxy Note 2 and used fire extinguisher to douse the fire, The Hindu reports, citing officials with the airline and DGCA.

Directorate General of Civil Aviation, a government body which oversees airworthiness standards and safety operations, will be issuing an advisory shortly to all the airlines telling passengers to either avoid using any Galaxy Note-series of smartphone, or switch them off during in flight.

"We are aware of an incident involving one of our devices. At Samsung, customer safety is our highest priority," a spokesperson for Samsung India said in a statement emailed to Mashable India. "We are in touch with relevant authorities to gather more information, and are looking into the matter."

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The incident comes at an unfortunate time for Samsung, after the Galaxy Note 7 had to be recalled worldwide amid reports of battery explosion. Earlier this month, several Indian airlines issued an advisory to tell air travellers to not turn on or charge the Note 7 during flight. Samsung is yet to launch the Galaxy Note 7 in India.

The Galaxy Note 2 was launched in India in 2012 and Samsung no longer sells the phone.

UPDATE: Friday, Sept. 23, 9:59 a.m.: Updated with Samsung India statement.