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The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and other agencies have banned power banks from checked luggage for years. Airlines have policies and make announcements on their websites and in person when checking bags to ask if there are any “lithium ion batteries” present. These portable chargers have been allowed in carry-on bags, but increased concerns around fire risks are making airlines around the world either stop their use or ban them altogether. Emirates is the latest carrier to join the list of airlines that no longer allow you to use portable power banks in flight (regardless of whether they are checked or in a carry-on) and to limit what can be carried on.
Starting on October 1st, Emirates will no longer allow passengers to use most power banks on its aircraft. Here are the key points of the new policy:
- Emirates customers may carry one power bank that is under 100 Watt Hours
- Power banks may not be used to charge any personal devices onboard
- Charging a power bank using the aircraft’s power supply is not permitted
- All power banks accepted for transport must have capacity rating information available
- Power banks may not be placed in the overhead stowage bin onboard the aircraft and must now be placed in the seat pocket or in a bag under the seat in front of you
- Power banks are not permitted in checked luggage (existing rule)
Other carriers like Southwest Airlines, Lufthansa, Singapore Airlines, AirAsia, Thai Airways, Qantas, Cathay Pacific, and EVA Air have all introduced their own restrictions. The very real fear of these devices overheating and causing a fire is guiding airlines to implement new policies. Back in January, and Air Busan Airbus A321 had a fire incident in South Korea. A power bank overheated in the overhead bin while the flight was boarding. Flight attendants could not extinguish the flames and the aircraft had to be evacuated.
Anthony’s Take: The concern is genuine and it’s good to see airlines cracking down on using and transporting power banks. A fire while in flight is extremely serious and these policies will hopefully help to prevent them.
(Featured Image Credit: O_Lypa via iStock.)
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Advertiser & Editorial Disclosure: The Bulkhead Seat earns an affiliate commission for anyone approved through the links above This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. We work to provide the best publicly available offers to our readers. We frequently update them, but this site does not include all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities.
