Replacement Samsung Galaxy Note 7 catches fire on plane

In devastating news for Samsung, it appears one of its replacement Galaxy Note 7 phones has suffered a battery meltdown and burned through carpet on the floor of a plane (scroll down for pics).

Southwest Airlines flight 944 from Louisville to Baltimore was evacuated Wednesday morning local time while still at the gate because of a smoking Note 7, according to a report by The Verge.

This isn't a shrill blog report. The Verge is a mainstream tech news site, and it spoke to the owner of the Note 7, one Brian Green.

He confirmed that he had picked up the new phone at an AT&T store on September 21 (the day the first replacement units became available; the initial run of Note 7s were pulled from shelves on September 2), and a photograph of the box shows the black square symbol that denotes a replacement Note 7. Mr Green also said it had a green battery icon, again signifying it was a replacement phone (Note 7s from the initial production run now display an on-screen warning message instead of the green battery icon).

According to the Verge's account, Mr Green said that he had powered down the phone as requested by the flight crew and put it in his pocket when it began smoking. He dropped it on the floor of the plane and a "thick grey-green angry smoke" was pouring out of the device. His colleague went back onto the plane to retrieve some personal belongings and said that the phone had burned through the carpet and scorched the subfloor of the plane.

Mr Green's Note 7 is now in the possession of the Louisville Fire Department’s arson unit for investigation.

The Verge tartly notes that Mr Green has replaced it with an Apple iPhone 7.

Samsung said in a statement to NBR, “Until we are able to retrieve the device, we cannot confirm that this incident involves the new Note 7. We are working with the authorities and Southwest now to recover the device and confirm the cause. Once we have examined the device we will have more information to share.”

Today, the company once again refused to say how many Note 7s were sold in NZ and how many have been successfully recalled.

ABOVE: Brian Green's Note 7 aboard the Southwest Airlines flight. The black square denotes it is a replacement handset.

The $1499 Note 7 was first released on August 19.

Samsung instigated a voluntary recall on September 2 of 2.5 million units shipped worldwide, including more than 50,000 across Australia and New Zealand.

Samsung reported 31 "incidents" by September 1.

On September 16, the US government's Consumer Product Safety Commission issued a formal recall notice following fears that some Note 7 buyers are ignoring Samsung and phone company requests to return the handset – despite the risk that the battery could overheat and cause a fire.

The CPSC notice update said that:

Samsung has received 92 reports of the batteries overheating in the US, including 26 reports of burns and 55 reports of property damage, including fires in cars and a garage.

The CPSC says a Note 7 customer should stop using the phone, power it down, then return it (reflecting Samsung's own advice in the US and New Zealand).

Air New Zealand and JetStar are among various airlines that have adopted an FAA ban on using or charging a Galaxy Note 7 from the initial production run on a flight.

Below: The Note 7 has become a pop culture phenomenon, if not quite the kind Samsung wants. In this Grand Theft Auto mod, the Galaxy phone is deployed a weapon: