A fire aboard a Virgin Atlantic flight headed to London has forced the plane to make an emergency landing in Boston.

Massachusetts state police said that the crew extinguished the fire caused by a suspected faulty battery charger on board the A330 Airbus plane on Thursday night local time.

All 217 passengers on flight 138 from JFK airport in New York to Heathrow were safely evacuated after landing along with the crew. One passenger refused treatment for a smoke-related complaint.

BREAKING NEWS - State Police confirm to @wbz a Virgin Atlantic flight from JFK to London made an emergency landing here in Boston after a fire onboard. Initial clues point to a seat fire. Everyone is safe. Hear from a passenger on @wbz News At 11:00 - Image from Cory Tanner pic.twitter.com/pOAj5MgdBF — Chris (@ChrisNWBZTV) July 5, 2019

An external phone charger appears to have caused the fire.

Massachusetts state police bomb disposal officers examined the aircraft after it landed and found a device between the cushions of a seat which had ignited.

“Preliminary investigation suggests it is a battery pack consistent in appearance with an external phone charger,” a police spokesman said.

Virgin Atlantic said it was “investigating” what led to smoke appearing in the cabin.

“The safety and security of our customers and crew is always our top priority and we are currently investigating to fully understand the circumstances,” a company spokeswoman said.

“We’d like to thank our customers for their patience as we work with them to provide local accommodation or to rebook alternative flights to their final destination.”

It was the second unusual landing at Boston’s Logan international airport on Thursday. Earlier, an American Airlines jetliner from Chicago declared an emergency as it approached the city but landed without incident.

The airline says the pilot of Flight 1172 called in an emergency when a cockpit light indicated an unspecified potential mechanical problem as the plane approached Boston.





