Lost laptop prompts third United Airlines flight diversion

A United Airlines flight to Switzerland was forced to return to the US after a passenger’s laptop slipped through a gap in the cabin and fell into the cargo hold.

Flight UA748 from Washington Dulles to Geneva diverted to Newark, New Jersey, on Thursday, following a device reported missing in the Polaris business class cabin.

The airline said that the transcontinental flight was turned around as a “precaution” to retrieve the laptop that had fallen “behind a cabin wall panel and through a small gap leading to the cargo hold”.

It’s the third United aircraft to be diverted in recent months due to the safety risk posed by a lost laptop, which contain lithium-ion batteries.

According to FlightAware data, the United Boeing 767 took off at around 5.19pm local time and was less than an hour into its almost eight-hour journey when the aircraft made a U-turn off the coast of Boston.

Devices powered by lithium-ion batteries pose a significant fire risk on planes, as damaged or overheated batteries can release toxic gases and cause fires on board.

The flight later departed Newark Liberty International airport for Geneva at around 10.43pm after landing shortly after 8pm to retrieve the laptop.

A spokesperson for United Airlines said: “On January 22, United flight 748 safely landed in Newark Liberty International airport as a precaution to retrieve a customer’s laptop that had fallen behind a cabin wall panel and through a small gap leading to the cargo hold.

“Maintenance crews retrieved the laptop, inspected the aircraft, and the flight later departed for Geneva.”

In October, a United Airlines flight similarly returned to the US after a laptop was dropped into the aircraft's cargo hold.

Flight UA126 from Washington Dulles to Rome Fiumicino returned to Virginia on 15 October due to a safety risk posed by the lost laptop, which contained a lithium-ion battery.

Following a three-hour delay to locate the laptop and refuel, the United flight departed to continue its journey to Rome.

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