Lithium Batteries On Flights - Introduction And Reason

Everyone travels, don’t we? However, there are a lot of restrictions when it comes to traveling by air. And one of these restrictions includes traveling with devices containing lithium batteries. Such conditions may seem trivial, but they can induce severe impacts, including unimaginable damage by igniting a fire. Since lithium batteries generate dangerous heat levels, it most likely causes ignition, resulting in damage through short circuits and causing an unimaginable fire. 

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Lithium Batteries Banned On Flights 

There are several restrictions when it comes to flying with an airline. As a result, various airline companies have banned passengers from using devices that contain lithium batteries in their devices. Apart from this, more restriction guidelines exist to safeguard passengers boarding the plane and warning them against the potential damages their devices can cause. These include: 

1.Fewer PEDs - Any device that requires a pack of lithium batteries for its power source is called a PED. Such devices include but are not limited to cameras, laptops, mobile phones, e-reading devices, medical equipment such as portable oxygen generators, among others. Apart from this, while boarding a plane, you must have less than fifteen electronic devices either in your carry-on or checked-in baggage.

2.Battery Ratings - If you are carrying a PED, ensure that it does not surpass the following conditions. 

●If you have lithium metal or lithium alloy batteries, the weight must not be over 2 grams. 

●The lithium-ion batteries should indicate an hour-watt rating of less than 100 Wh. However, if your battery’s capacity is shown in milliampere-hours, divide the ampere-hours by 1000 while executing the math. 

3.A Complete Switch-Off - You must switch off your lithium battery device entirely when onboard a flight. You must not keep the device in sleep or even hibernation mode. 

4.Protection From Damages - If your lithium battery is allowed on the flight under any exceptional circumstances, proper precautions must be set in place to avoid any potential fire hazards. 

Traveling with a device that entails lithium batteries or shipping them through a flight can be a complicated feat that might result in unimaginable losses for thespecial company. Therefore, authorities must take all necessary precautions to avoid any potential losses or fire hazards that the batteries pose. Apart from this, the plane staff can also ban you from the flight entirely if you are found in possession of lithium batteries. 

Spare Lithium Batteries On Flights 

There are two kinds of batteries that are banned on flights. These include: 

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Spare Lithium Batteries - If you are carrying lithium polymer or lithium metal, the airline may prevent you from flying with it. And yes, you are not allowed to travel with them either in the carry-on or the checked baggage. However, a recent piece of news that made headlines globally was that the airlines have also banned passengers from carrying lithium batteries in their luggage. Such restrictions stem from the dangers that are associated with lithium batteries. Suppose a single-celled battery were to catch fire because of the thermal runaways. In that case, a dangerous fire can ignite, causing unimaginable damage to the airplane and the passengers flying. 

You must have also witnessed similar havoc in the viral YouTube videos that you might stumble across on the internet. As a result,special authorities have banned devices that contain flammable materials, including headphones, hoverboards, and the recent Samsung 7 smartphones, after being proven that the model comprises items that may catch fire easily. Similar cautions extend to spare lithium batteries and, therefore, should be kept strictly outside of flights. Suppose you are caught with spare lithium batteries during the security check-in at the airport. In that case, the chances are that the authorities might bar you from boarding the flight or simply confiscate the batteries or the device and let you fly without them. 

Spillable Batteries - These batteries refer to the car or the wet batteries you may have noticed in your vehicles. However, if you plan to sneak them away in your luggage suitcase, we are sorry, but it will not be possible. Spillable batteries are strictly not allowed on flights. A few exceptional circumstances include if you have a battery wheelchair and it needs to be transported through the flight, or the battery you are asking to let them in is used to recharge an electric scooter. During such circumstances, you will be allowed to carry the battery on the plane. Nonetheless, you must inform the cabin crew that you have a battery or a device that may entail one. Once you tell them, thespecial authorities will take the necessary safety precautions to ensure a safe flight. 

Why Do Airlines Ask About Lithium Batteries? 

Airlines ask about lithium batteries because they pose a potential fire hazard when flying in a plane. If you travel frequently, you must have heard the flight attendant prompting you to switch off your devices before the flight takes off. It is because the thermal runways can ignite the device to cause a short circuit in the wiring of the plane, thereby causing the plane system to malfunction. The same concept applies to lithium batteries which also cause a fire hazard. As a result, you cannot carry them either in the carry-on or the checked baggage. If you are found with any lithium battery device on you, thespecial authorities may ask you to dump the device or simply bar you from boarding the flight entirely. 

In Conclusion 

Traveling with lithium batteries can be hazardous for both you and the passengers traveling alongside. As a result, they are barred from planes following the potential fire danger it causes while the plane takes off. It is also whyspecial authorities have gone ahead to ban them except in a few exceptional circumstances. Although airplanes have fire extinguisher systems, the plane staff goes ahead with a big no-no for lithium batteries because why take a risk when you can mitigate it entirely. Therefore, you must mind your devices having lithium batteries before boarding a plane.