FAA warns airlines of explosion risk in lithium batteries

Hart pointed out that close fires like this increase the damage that it creates and, in turn, decreases the flight crew’s ability to respond to it. If up on flame, these lithium-ion batteries can go as hot as 1100 degrees which are basically the melting point of aluminum, a material typically used in aircraft frame.

As the FAA issued a safety alert about lithium batteries, other federal safety officials called for stricter rules on how they are shipped to prevent uncontrollable fires.

The Federal Aviation Administration, which regulates the aviation industry, on Tuesday sent a notice to airlines urging them to study the fire and explosion risks of lithium shipments linked to three accidents before they place the volatile power packs in cargo holds.

In January, the agency issued a safety alert for operators (SAFO) in order to support airlines, which performed safety assessments and seek to re-evaluate them after new data emerged from the FAA’s recent lithium battery fire tests.

Cargo companies such as United Parcel Service Inc. and FedEx Corp. have not followed the passenger carriers in banning the shipments. Authorities saw two pallets containing lithium-ion batteries and the other one containing flammable liquids closely situated together.

“Too many manufacturers and shippers, especially in certain regions of the world, ignore existing labeling and packaging requirements”, the groups continued. In 2013, Boeing grounded the 787 Dreamliner airplane until it could find a way to keep its onboard lithium-ion batteries from overheating.

A funding bill for the FAA that is being considered this week in the House “establishes a Lithium Ion Battery Safety Advisory Committee to foster collaboration on lithium ion battery safety in air transportation”, although it stops short of implementing a total ban.

It also comes as legislation proposed last week to set FAA policy for the next six years would continue a prohibition on new lithium restrictions in the US that are stricter than those adopted by the United Nations’ aviation arm, the International Civil Aviation Organization.

They are also increasingly used in industrial machinery and equipment.