Smoke from a gadget forced an IndiGo jet to divert. India already bans power banks in overhead bins

An IndiGo flight from Delhi to Chennai made an unplanned stop in Hyderabad on Sunday, Oct. 11, after smoke started coming from a passenger's gadget. The plane landed safely. And the place the device was reportedly sitting, an overhead bin, is exactly where India's aviation regulator says power banks should never go.

What happened on 6E 6115

IndiGo confirmed the basics in a short statement, quoted by the Press Trust of India. Flight 6E 6115 was diverted "after smoke was detected from a customer's personal electronic device." The airline said the cabin crew "responded promptly" and got the situation under control. The pilots then diverted, "in line with established protocols," and landed at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad. IndiGo arranged another plane to take passengers on to Chennai.

PTI reported that the device was kept in an overhead bin. NDTV reported that a malfunctioning power bank started a fire in the overhead compartment, and that cabin crew put it out with fire extinguishers. NDTV also said a passenger's video shows other travelers trying to smother the flames with bags. IndiGo's own statement still says only "personal electronic device" and does not name a cause. NDTV reported that all passengers and crew were safe. We will update this story if the airline or investigators say more.

India already has a rule for this

Last November, India's Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) sent airlines and airports a safety notice on lithium batteries. It is Dangerous Goods Advisory Circular No. 01/2025, dated Nov. 11, 2025.

The circular is direct about the risk. Power banks and similar devices "can act as ignition sources." Lithium battery fires "may be self-sustaining" and need special methods to put out. And it singles out the overhead bin. Batteries placed there "may be obscured, difficult to access, or not readily monitored," the regulator wrote. That can delay the moment anyone notices smoke.

So the DGCA told airlines to make cabin announcements telling passengers to:

• Carry power banks and spare batteries in hand baggage only.
• Never use or charge a power bank during the flight.
• Tell the crew right away if any device gets hot, smokes or smells odd.

It also said power banks and spare batteries "shall not be placed in overhead bins." Airlines should teach passengers to prevent short circuits, too, by keeping batteries in plastic bags or cases, or by taping over the terminals.

IndiGo's own rules

IndiGo's dangerous goods table spells out the same limits. The airline treats a power bank as a spare battery. That means:

• Cabin bags only. Never pack one in a checked bag.
• Two at most. IndiGo allows no more than two power banks per person.
• 100 watt-hours or less for a standard lithium-ion battery. Spares from 100 to 160 Wh need IndiGo's approval, and anything over 160 Wh is banned.
• Keep it in sight. Power banks and spare batteries must stay "within sight and not in overhead bins."
• No charging on board. You can't recharge a power bank or use it to charge your phone during the flight.

Not sure about watt-hours? IndiGo gives the formula: milliamp-hours times volts, divided by 1,000. A common 20,000 mAh pack at 3.7 volts works out to 74 Wh, under the limit.

The weak spot is the bin

Here is our take. The rule is clear, but it depends on passengers following it. Most people board with a power bank tucked in a backpack. Most backpacks go straight into the overhead bin. Crews can't check every bag, and on a busy flight nobody wants to slow down the aisle.

That is why the DGCA's own wording matters. It admits that a battery in a bin is hard to see and hard to reach. A battery under the seat in front of you, or in your pocket, is a battery someone will notice if it starts to smoke. That is a few seconds faster, and in a cabin fire, seconds count.

IndiGo has not confirmed that a power bank caused Sunday's scare, though that is what news reports say. But the lesson holds either way. Before you put your bag up top, take the power bank out. Keep it where you can see it.

You can find IndiGo's fleet and ratings on our IndiGo page.