Southwest Airlines will require chargers be kept out while in use because of battery fire concerns

Passengers will soon be asked for southwestern flights to maintain their portable trucks at sight while using them due to concerns about the increasing number of leanium battery fires in a new policy that other airlines may adopt.

Southwest announced the new policy that will enter into force on May 28, and told travelers who have already seen notifications about the base when using the airline application. While Southwest is the first American airline to restrict the use of mobile charging devices like this, many Asian Airlines have taken measures earlier this year after a devastating fire on the Busan air plane waiting to take off from an airport in South Korea in January.

There is an increased concern about the fires of the lithium -ion battery on the aircraft because the number of accidents is still growing annually, and the devices where these batteries operate everywhere. There were already 19 incidents that included these batteries this year, after a record number last year, 89, according to the statistics of the Federal Aviation Administration.

The incidents have multiplied more than weakness since the 39 -year -old epidemic has declined, and climbed annually.

Some research indicates that portable charging devices may be the second reason for battery fires on aircraft, only behind electronic cigarettes.

Compared to approximately 180,000 flights operating American airlines every week, the number of accidents is still relatively small and lithium batteries can increase temperature anywhere. However, this is a growing concern for airlines.

“It is definitely a serious danger,” said David Roth, who is studying the risk of UL standards. Participation and work with 37 airlines and batteries to reduce them. At least UL airlines operate with re -evaluating the risk associated with the rechargeable batteries, so additional changes can come in the base.

What happened before?

In the Korean Airlines fire in January, all 176 people on board were evacuated because the fire was burned across the surface of the plane. The cause of this fire has not been officially determined, but many Korean airlines and organizers have taken measures against portable charging devices after that.

Korean airlines will not allow storing shipping devices in upper boxes anymore; It should be packed in a plastic bag or its ports are covered with insulation tape to prevent it from touching the metal.

In addition, both Singaporean Airlines and Thai Airlines prohibit the use or charge of mobile power banks at all during flights.

Last summer, a laptop smoking in a passenger bag has evacuated a plane awaiting take off at San Francisco International Airport. In 2023, a trip from Dallas to Orlando, Florida, has undergone emergency situations in Jacksonville, Florida, after fire caught a battery in the upper box.

Why does this change happen?

South West said that calling these chargers to go out in the open when using them will help because “in a rare state of the high temperature of the lithium battery or indicates the fire, rapid access is more important and keeping energy banks in sight allows to intervene faster and helps to protect everyone on the plane.”

Experts have long recommended that re -charging devices be kept during flights so that they can be monitored for any signs of problems such as becoming very hot to touch, start bloating or smoking. But airlines must rely on consumers’ education and encourage them to take precautions.

“In the end, it comes to a lot of personal responsibility that we must like to bear,” said Roth.

Southwest will allow the storage of charging devices inside load bags when they are not in use. But a spokeswoman for the airline alerts customers only about politics before their journey and requests their compliance. Wroth said this approach may be better.

“We have enough problems with unbridled passengers already. The presence of the cabin crew faces someone to bring something unlikely to be a good position as well.”

What do the current rules say?

The Transport Security Administration has long banned electronic cigarettes, shipping and energy banks with Li -ion batteries in specific bags, but allowing them in bearing bags. The base is located specifically because the fires in the hanging suspension may be difficult to discover and extinguish them.

FAA recommends that travelers keep mobile phones and other aircraft devices so that they can quickly reach them. The agency said that the flight crews are trained to identify and respond to the lithium battery fires. Passengers should notify the flight crew immediately if it is a lithium battery or their device in high temperature, expansion, smoking or combustion.

How common is this problem?

The latest search from UL standards And the participation said that the data from 2024 indicates that mobile charging devices were responsible for 19 % of the accidents, although this was only a little advanced about the number of cell phone accidents. Electronic cigarettes made up 28 % of problems.

Almost a third of all passengers carried cargo devices on flights last year.

More than a quarter of the travelers surveyed last year said they put excessive cigarettes and the charger carried in specific bags. This is against federal rules, but Wroth said it might be an issue of them who do not understand the risks as much as passengers try to hide devices.

UL standards Participation, part of a safety sciences company known as the subscription laboratories, said it depends on its results on data from 37 lines for passengers and shipping, including nine Ten US passenger companies. It is only preparing to issue this year’s report.