The US Department of Transport (DOT) banned lithium-ion batteries from passenger holds on commercial flights on February 27, 2019. Their Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) press release provides the background. “This rule will strengthen safety for the traveling public by addressing the unique challenges lithium batteries pose in transportation”. We doubt the DOT bans consumer goods lightly. Why are they doing this now?
FAA Lithium Battery Chart Explains Why DOT Bans These
The FAA Lithium Battery Chart is cause for concern for anybody traveling on aircraft. The warning is short and to the point. “As of August, 2018, 225 air/airport incidents involving lithium batteries in cargo or baggage have been recorded since March, 1991”.
“These are recent cargo and baggage incidents that the FAA is aware of,” it explains. Therefore this is not a complete listing of all such incidents. “It does not represent all information the FAA has collected, or all actions taken. This list also does not include three major aircraft accidents. These were where lithium battery cargo shipments were implicated but not proven to be the source of the fire.”
What the US Department of Transport Ban Means for Passengers
The reasoning behind the DOT bans on lithium devices become clearer in the light of the above. They have understandably banned “lithium-ion batteries stored in baggage holds on commercial passenger flights”.
However, they will relent “if they are at a 30% state of charge or less”. How they will determine this fact remains a mystery to us. The DOT says the new arrangement will allow personal devices as hand luggage, while they transport cargo shipments separately.
The main implication for air travelers is thus they may no longer store laptops, smartphones, and other battery-powered devices in baggage holds on US flights. We assume larger devices such as servers and desktops will now have to travel as freight.
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