Melbourne woman’s headphones explode mid-flight

A Melbourne woman has suffered burns after her battery powered headphones exploded mid-flight.

The lithium batteries exploded about two hours into the flight from Beijing in January.

The woman suffered minor burns and flight attendants eventually put the flaming batteries out in a bucket of water.

Australian Transport Safety Bureau spokesperson Stuart Goodley said it served as a warning.

‘I would probably stay away from lithium batteries in headphones and other electronic devices when on an aircraft when you can, and just use normal batteries,’ he said.

He said it was lucky the headphones weren’t stowed away in the overhead locker where it could have developed into a more serious fire.