FAA warns danger of lithium batteries in luggage

According to CNBC, the Federal Aviation Administration sent a safety warning to airlines that says lithium batteries – the type of batteries commonly used in all sorts of consumer devices – “present a risk of both igniting and fueling fires in aircraft cargo/baggage compartments”.

Passengers can still carry small numbers of spare batteries in luggage they carry on the plane.

The FAA recommends protecting each individual battery to prevent short circuits.

The agency is strongly urging airlines to tell passengers to make sure the batteries are not in checked bags. If they are found during a random search, the batteries may be removed, leaving you in quite a pickle.

The advisory covers “spare lithium metal and spare rechargeable lithium ion batteries for personal electronics such as cameras, cell phones, laptop computers, tablets, watches, calculators, etc”.

And while carrying on your batteries has always been the smart move, the FAA is being stricter on how you pack them in carry-on luggage. “To reduce the risk of lithium battery fires, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR), and equivalent worldwide Civil Aviation Organization’s Technical Instructions for the Safe Transport of risky Goods (ICAO TI), prohibit spare lithium batteries from checked baggage (including baggage checked at the gate or on-board the aircraft)”, the FAA wrote. The batteries should be stored separately from other metal objects.

For a complete list of allowed and banned items on board, the FAA advised passengers to refer to their website.