Laptop in checked luggage caused smoke, evacuation of plane at SFO

SFO passenger saw smoke in AA plane before chaotic evacuation

A passenger on an American Airlines flight at SFO tells KTVU he saw smoke in the back of the cabin, as people started screaming and rushing to get out of the plane through emergency exits and the boarding door.

SAN FRANCISCO - A laptop in a customer's checked bag is responsible for the smoke that led to the evacuation of an American Airlines plane at the San Francisco International Airport on Friday. The evacuation happened as passengers were boarding the flight, according to video at the scene and the airport.

American Airlines said smoke was coming from a customer's bag and was quickly removed by crew members.

One passenger sustained minor injuries while exiting the aircraft, according to the airline.

The plane was evacuated, and photos of the incident show some passengers evacuating the plane via the emergency slide.

The San Francisco Fire Department responded to the scene. The department traced the smoke to the customer's carry-on bag.

"The smoke was reported from a laptop within the customer's bag. The laptop and bag were quickly removed by our crew members and all customers exited the aircraft. We thank our crew members for their professionalism and apologize to our customers for the inconvenience," AA said in a statement.

A video shared by Venture Beat reporter Emilia David showed "a bunch of really angry, confused and understandably scared passengers."

Flight 2045 was bound for Miami.

"We were already on the plane. We were already sitting down and they were finishing up boarding the plane," said passenger Carlos Leyva. "Someone yelled and screamed that there was a fire in the back of the plane." He described the smell of wires burning.

"I stood up and looked back and there was a significant amount of smoke back there," Leyva said.

"Everyone just tried pushing each other out of the way. That's when people went for the exits, opened them up and there go the slides. There was no time for any announcements," Levya said. He said he was glad there were no major injuries. "A lot of people were scared. Glad it happened while we were on the ground."

Levya said there's a lesson to be learned when evacuating: Don't try to take bags, which slowed some people down.

"A lot of us were yelling at people. ‘Get out now! Dont’ try to grab your bag. Just get out now. There's no time for that.'"

As for his flight, Levya said the airline was working on a replacement plane from LAX airport. The departure time, which he said keeps changing was last set for an 11:15 p.m. takeoff.

The news comes just days after another American Airlines plane departing Tampa International Airport blew an engine and then a tire moments before take-off.

Smoke was seen coming from the plane and American Airlines said there was a mechanical issue on the plane, bound for Phoenix.