Passenger banned after allegedly vaping on board flight

1 Apr 2026 • 1:37 AM MYT
The Independent
The Independent

The world’s most free-thinking newspaper

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  • An Alaska Airlines flight from Seattle to Sacramento was met by police after a passenger allegedly set off a smoke alarm by vaping in the toilet.
  • The incident occurred on Thursday on flight AS1463 at cruising altitude, prompting the pilot to request law enforcement to meet the aircraft.
  • Vaping on an aircraft is a federal offence due to the fire risk posed by lithium batteries in electronic smoking devices.
  • The flight landed safely in Sacramento, and the passenger involved has since been banned from flying with Alaska Airlines.
  • This incident follows a similar event earlier this month, where a vaping device ignited on a Virgin Australia flight during descent into Melbourne.

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