Lufthansa bans use of power banks on board
Due to fire hazard, power banks are no longer permitted for use on Lufthansa aircraft. Their carriage and storage are also regulated.
Lufthansa aircraft taking off
(Image: Lufthansa)
Lufthansa has tightened the regulations for mobile batteries, so-called power banks. According to the German airline, these may no longer be used on board aircraft.
Each passenger is allowed to carry a maximum of two power banks on board a Lufthansa Group Airlines flight. However, these may “neither be used nor charged.” The rules came into effect on January 15, Lufthansa announced.
Power banks must be carried in hand luggage. According to the new rules, passengers must stow them “in the seat pocket of the seat in front, on their body, or in the hand luggage under the seat.” Checking them in with luggage is prohibited, as is storing them in the overhead compartments. This also applies to e-cigarettes.
The maximum capacity of power banks that can be taken on board an aircraft is 160 watt-hours, with power banks with a capacity between 100 and 160 watt-hours requiring prior registration with the airline. Up to a capacity of 100 watt-hours can be carried without prior registration.
Videos by heise
Smartphones, tablets, and laptops are not affected
This is not a problem for common mobile devices, as they are well below these limits: smartphone batteries have about 5 to 15 watt-hours, tablet batteries 10 to 200 watt-hours, and laptop batteries 25 to 80 watt-hours. Batteries for digital cameras are usually under 10 watt hours.
The rules apply to all Lufthansa Group airlines, including Eurowings, Swiss, and Austrian. They are based on the recommendations of international aviation organizations such as the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the International Air Transport Association (IATA). The airlines have adapted the regulations for power banks following several fires on aircraft in the USA and Asia.
For example, various East Asian airlines already tightened the rules for power banks on aircraft at the beginning of last year. The reason was a fire at the end of January 2025 that broke out in the overhead compartment of a machine of the South Korean airline Air Busan. Fortunately, the aircraft, which was largely destroyed, was still on the ground, and all 176 occupants were able to evacuate via the emergency slides, with some sustaining minor injuries.
(wpl)
