ATLANTA- Frontier Airlines (F9) flight from Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) to New York JFK made an emergency landing in Atlanta on March 14, 2025, after a passenger repeatedly ignited a cigarette lighter on board and refused to surrender it to crew members.
Flight attendants attempted to confiscate the lighter when the passenger continued flicking it during the flight, creating a significant safety hazard. When the passenger refused to comply, the flight crew declared an emergency, explaining they had no alternative but to divert the Airbus aircraft.
Photo: Frontier AirlinesFrontier Pilot Declares Emergency
Upon landing in Atlanta, law enforcement boarded the plane, removed the unruly passenger, and transported him to a local hospital for medical evaluation.
No injuries were reported among other passengers or crew members, flaggedViewfromtheWing.
This man was simply asked to give the steward his lighter for the rest of the trip or the entire flight would have to be diverted. He refused.
You can’t have a functioning society with them. pic.twitter.com/eC0dgyvL7m
— David Santa Carla (@TheOnlyDSC) March 22, 2025
Many travelers expressed surprise that the passenger managed to bring a lighter through security screening. However, Transportation Security Administration regulations do permit passengers to carry a single lighter in their carry-on luggage. The prohibition specifically applies to igniting the lighter while onboard an aircraft.
Video footage of the confrontation between the flight attendant and passenger circulated on social media, showing the crew member attempting to handle the situation professionally before the decision to divert was made.
The remaining passengers continued their journey to New York after the incident was resolved in Atlanta.
Photo: Photo: avgeekwithlens/ Harsh TekriwalSimilar Incidents
SpiceJet (SG) clarified that the viral video showing Gurugram influencer Balvinder Kataria smoking onboard an aircraft depicts an incident from January 2022, not a recent occurrence.
The airline confirmed Kataria had already been placed on a no-flying list for 15 days in February 2022 following an investigation into the matter.
इस देश में एयरपोर्ट पर सुरक्षा का हाल ये है । @AmitShah जी @AmitShah जी ये व्यक्ति सरेआम देश के क़ानून की धज्जियाँ उड़ा रहा है ।कितनी चूक है सुरक्षा में ये कारनामा । pic.twitter.com/JybE1EnGJh
— Umesh Kumar (@Umeshnni) August 10, 2022
“This is with reference to a video on social media of a passenger smoking onboard a SpiceJet aircraft. The matter had been investigated thoroughly in January 2022 when the video was brought to our notice and a complaint had been filed by the airline with the Udyog Vihar police station in Gurugram,” the airline stated.
SpiceJet’s investigation revealed the video was recorded on January 20, 2022, during boarding of flight SG 706 scheduled to operate from Dubai to Delhi. The passenger and his companions filmed the incident on the 21st row while cabin crew members were busy completing pre-flight procedures. Neither passengers nor crew were aware of the act at the time.
The airline learned about the incident on January 24, 2022, through social media posts. Following protocol, SpiceJet referred the case to an internal committee established under Civil Aviation Requirements for handling unruly passengers, resulting in the 15-day flying ban.
The video resurfaced in headlines after a Twitter user shared it while tagging Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia. The minister responded, “Investigating it. There will be no tolerance towards such hazardous behavior.”
Old Video Getting Viral
Separately, another video circulating shows a woman smoking on an Istanbul-Cyprus flight, where she attempted to set a seat on fire after cabin crew tried to confiscate her lighter. Crew members poured water to prevent the fire.
Passengers detain woman after she tries to smoke on plane and burn seat cover with lighter pic.twitter.com/fF7WHT9VYo
— The Sun (@TheSun) March 17, 2025
This incident likely occurred in 2019 but has recently resurfaced in news coverage.
Smoking regulations on flights have evolved significantly over the decades. United Airlines created the first nonsmoking section in 1971, while Delta became the first U.S. airline to completely ban smoking worldwide in 1994. U.S. airlines were permitted to offer onboard smoking until 2000.
Despite smoking bans, aircraft still contain ashtrays, typically near lavatories. This safety feature provides a secure place for passengers who break regulations to extinguish cigarettes, preventing them from disposing of lit cigarettes in trash receptacles where they could ignite paper waste and cause fires.
Feature Image by Clément Alloing | Flickr
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