THAI bans external battery packs on board

[ChrisY1]

The greater danger is cargo ( the Fedex crash). On any flight there are several hundred ( if not more) lithium ion batteries. They are in cell phones, computers, ipads, watches. The power back is just a lithium ion battery packaked differntly. In the miniscule number of cases in which lithium ion batteries have caused a problem in the cabin, they have been ( as far as I recall) computer batteries. The incidents, while frightening, were easily contained .

Thai is the first airline to do this.

Qantas has bans on external lithium batteries also......so maybe others do also

OK, if they do, they don't enforce it. ...I took one on a QANTAS plane yesterday.

From Qantas website...

Spare lithium ion batteries with a Watt-hour rating exceeding 100Wh but not exceeding 160Wh for consumer electronic devices. Maximum of two spare batteries may be carried in carry-on baggage only. These batteries must be individually protected to prevent short circuits.

My mistake.....

[smedly]

Bit late at check-in, unless you don't object to binning it.

What's the big safety difference between a power bank and the original battery? I carry a spare for my laptop....................

some of these power packs are not built to the same high safety standards of original equipment, a laptop battery for example has built in circuit boards and safety circuits that monitor the batteries condition and will disable it if it shows any sign of going out of spec

[belg]

officials will be happy if tourists have to bin these... they can buy them later in the officials side business shop ...

some smart business people should start a - rent your power back - shop

[thairastawoman]

Totally stupid.

Airlines cannot find a gun in a luggage and they will find a battery pack...

[FangFerang]

Board of Supervisors: We're almost bankrupt! What can we do?

Newest Chief Stooge: Let's enact more regulations!

[impulse]

will my world end if I can't use them for a few hours, hell no. At least the stage coach travelled at a more sedate pace than instant messaging, which means instant action and an expected instant reply. Get a life, we lived quite happily with a fixed line phone.

Maybe your world won't end, but you won't be getting hired on with my employer if you're living with a fixed phone line.

In fact, I'd say you'd be locking yourself out of 40% of all jobs and 75% of the highest paying jobs in the world, and 95% of the good jobs in my industry with that outlook. And in a thrashed economy, no less.

Much as I dislike it, a lot of us are handcuffed to our cell phones. Golden handcuffs for some of us, fortunately.

Still, I get a kick out of the CEO's of some major companies (tech companies no less) that claim one of their keys to a balanced life is to turn off their cell phones at night. They can do that because they're at the top of the pyramid of poop. It rolls downhill, and their minions would be gone in a heartbeat if they followed the same practice...

Edited September 14, 2014 by impulse

[utkb]

I board now with my USB wire.

Most etihad planes have USB sockets in all classes

I was going to mention the same. These are available in both business and coach seats. I would expect all airlines to fit their seats with them.

[MediaWatcher]

drand11, on 14 Sept 2014 - 17:57, said:

Crazy...now theres a chance they take my 2 battery pack? I eill fly another airline. Simple & cheaper

Woohoo, one less passenger playing with his "must have" toys. Some kids never grow up. Here's some suggestions, take a book, watch the on board movies, take a deck of cards, learn more Thai. Why is it this generation must have they toys 100% of the time, or their world will end.

[MediaWatcher]

impulse, on 14 Sept 2014 - 18:50, said:

MediaWatcher, on 14 Sept 2014 - 17:31, said:

will my world end if I can't use them for a few hours, hell no. At least the stage coach travelled at a more sedate pace than instant messaging, which means instant action and an expected instant reply. Get a life, we lived quite happily with a fixed line phone.

Maybe your world won't end, but you won't be getting hired on with my employer if you're living with a fixed phone line.

In fact, I'd say you'd be locking yourself out of 40% of all jobs and 75% of the highest paying jobs in the world, and 95% of the good jobs in my industry with that outlook. And in a thrashed economy, no less.

Much as I dislike it, a lot of us are handcuffed to our cell phones. Golden handcuffs for some of us, fortunately.

Still, I get a kick out of the CEO's of some major tech companies that claim one of their keys to a balanced life is to turn off their cell phones at night. They can do that because they're at the top of the pyramid of poop. It rolls downhill, and their minions would be gone in a heartbeat if they followed the same practice...

You completely missed the point, so it's no use saying any more, but hey get a life, even your boss doesn't expect you to answer while flying.

[MediaWatcher]

utkb, on 14 Sept 2014 - 18:50, said:

apiwan, on 14 Sept 2014 - 17:51, said:

I board now with my USB wire.

Most etihad planes have USB sockets in all classes

I was going to mention the same. These are available in both business and coach seats. I would expect all airlines to fit their seats with them.

I know that at least some Thai aircraft also have them, never used them, but looking at the instructions they are for playback, it doesn't mention if they are "powered" outlets for charging purposes.

[phil2803]

Initially thought this was bad news for my powerbank, but the biggest one I have is only 11000mAHr and I have 2 others which are even smaller, so no big deal. Can you even buy power banks over 32000mAHr, I doubt it. Its a bit of a beat up story in my opinion.

[jethro69]

Fit USB sockets in all aircraft seats, then we won't need batteries.

Well, on my last flight (intercontinental,3 weeks ago) with Thai, all seats were fitted with USB sockets, and I didn't have to use them, as the entertainment system keep me busy enough. And I don't mean the trolley-dollies.

[j8k]

Crazy rule designed so you have to pay to watch their inflight tv no doubt. They'll ban mobile phones next.

[saakura]

I am about to board a TG flight now and nobody asked me to remove the power bank from my carry-on bag.

[Boatfreak]

Fit USB sockets in all aircraft seats, then we won't need batteries.

My note 2 can easly go a 12 hour flight even if I used it the whole time but why would I. I like to sleep!

[Boatfreak]

Hreat send me one as a birthday present as my old laptop will only last two hours.

[Basil B]

The sensible thing would be to ban all lithium iron batteries on all flights but that is just no going to happen, so reducing the number and limiting the size of batteries should reduce the number of incidents caused by them.

So those who say they will not fly with Thai because of the ban... well I would be more happier to fly Thai if I ever thought they could ever enforce such a ban properly.

Edited September 14, 2014 by Basil B

[impulse]

Initially thought this was bad news for my powerbank, but the biggest one I have is only 11000mAHr and I have 2 others which are even smaller, so no big deal. Can you even buy power banks over 32000mAHr, I doubt it. Its a bit of a beat up story in my opinion.

Don't know about power banks, but my e-bike has a Li-Ion battery at 5x the maximum flyable size. A lot of commercial and industrial equipment has large Li-Ion batteries, and a lot of it's been flown all over the world (industrial equipment, not my e-bike- it stays on the ground).

I fear the next (first?, I don't know) airline crash due to Li-Ion battery failure will be from industrial test equipment shipped as cargo, and not from some 1/4-1/2 lb power bank in someone's carry on.

Edited September 14, 2014 by impulse

[kimamey]

Is this not related to latest security clampdowns in the UK USA airports where mobile phones or computers that must be turned on and shown to be working as you pass through the security check? If you have a phone and the battery is flat so it won't power up it's not allowed on the flight. These batteries and power banks have some kind of potential to used as bombs onboard. The authorities have only just become aware of it. I haven't paid much attention to this as I am not flying in the UK or US at the moment. I think this is the angle that TG's ban may be coming from as well as the long established fire hazard.

I travel a bunch and haven't heard a word about this from the west.

Sounds like THAI just overreacting. It's a favorite sport out here.

It was at the beginning of July.

The security agencies didn't say much about the reasons but there were reports about making bombs that could evade security. My guess is they could be concealed inside electronic equipment but but the device couldn't be used for it's normal purpose because of issues with the batteries. This would mean that the device couldn't be powered up so requiring it to be turned on would expose the bomb.

I assume with battery packs you could still test it by connecting it to another device such as a phone to see if it will charge it.

Whether this has anything to do with the restrictions on Thai Airways I don't know.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-28185149

Edited September 14, 2014 by kimamey

[Sayonarax]

Glad I saw this as I fly next week and have 2 packs valued at $100AUD Would not have been happy if I had to throw $200 into the rubbish bin

They upgraded some 777 with new seats, screens and usb chargers.

[tomyummer]

Typical knee jerk reaction by a Thai organization.

[ChoakMyDee]

Thai Airways is on a steady downward spiral. Not too bright to be alienating customers even further.

[Suradit69]

The greater danger is cargo ( the Fedex crash). On any flight there are several hundred ( if not more) lithium ion batteries. They are in cell phones, computers, ipads, watches. The power back is just a lithium ion battery packaked differntly. In the miniscule number of cases in which lithium ion batteries have caused a problem in the cabin, they have been ( as far as I recall) computer batteries. The incidents, while frightening, were easily contained .

Thai is the first airline to do this.

Qantas has bans on external lithium batteries also......so maybe others do also

Spare lithium batteries banned in checked luggage

The United States Department of Transportation has implemented the following guidance on packing lithium batteries in checked and carry-on baggage. Customers are advised not to pack loose lithium batteries in checked baggage for any United Airlines flight that operates in, from or within the United States. Larger lithium batteries (more than 100 watt hours, but not exceeding 300 watt hours) are limited to two (2) in carry-on baggage.

[Carib]

I really don't understand some of the postings here; Lets blame Thai airways because they are trying to save your and my ass seems to be the motto.

Here is a FAA bulletin on battery fires: http://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/ash/ash_programs/hazmat/aircarrier_info/media/battery_incident_chart.pdf

And here is a link to one of those incidents: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-09-08/undeclared-batteries-sparked-plane-fire-at-melbourne-airport3a/5728574 Which happened before the aircraft went airborn !!!!

To those who will ignore this I can only say I hope you enjoy your inflight sparkling fire, Christmas sometimes comes when you least expect it.

[iamariva1957]

Okay ... so does this mean that Thai Air will offer up more charging points so that we can plug in and recharge those Lithium batteries that already power our devises? Good luck with that idea!

Are they kidding? Come on, what is next... The actual batteries that are already in our devises? Bik pens that even pilots fear being used as a stabbing weapon? The amount of booze served is in and of itself a greater potential threat on a plane. Then what about the O2 cylinders carried for emergencies... when were they last serviced/inspected? The lighter that the 'security monitor watchers' never seem to notice (thank God if you are a smoker). Come on... the small power pack devises are not really an issue. The greater threat are the big ones (aircraft system grade) being shipped in the hold of the aircraft that are the bigger worry here. Not to mention the large cardboard boxes that seem to be part of someone's checked luggage that just fly through security.

Lithium batteries are an issue for there have been instances where problems have arisen with them. But they pale in comparison to the instances of unruly passengers. Should they be a concern? Sure. Everything getting on a plane should be considered a potential threat. For the aircraft is a sealed container flying at 30,000+ feet. But to say that a power pack about an inch long and 1/2 inch wide that produces somewhere between 2200mAh and 6000mAh (depending on your need... though the former has enough to charge your average iPhone one time) the issue with them over heating and bursting into flames is so small that you would need a microscope to examine their potential to become a threat to the cabin.

There are greater concerns For Thai Air and the others to worry about after all. I say ban the hell out of the Knee protector (a devise that does not allow the person in front of you from reclining their dam seat). That just makes people angry as shown on that flight in the US.

[Upnotover]

I am about to board a TG flight now and nobody asked me to remove the power bank from my carry-on bag.

And nor would they. The original news story is wrong.

[ginjag]

Bit late at check-in, unless you don't object to binning it.

What's the big safety difference between a power bank and the original battery? I carry a spare for my laptop....................

Exactly---------------------I remember donkey"s years ago Thai doing this for any batteries, when I arrived at the bag check I noticed a wire basket 1 meter high full of batteries, then asked to bin all I had. Walkman aa-----Minolta camera expensive battery----phone----- but couldn't operate to remove my pacemaker so allowed that to stay. At the time this huge collection had a very high saleable value, I often wondered who benefitted-----knowing they would never be dumped

[LennyW]

OK, hold the phone. On the Thai Airways Facebook page, they have uploaded an infographic showing that you CAN bring most batteries on board, but can NOT have them in check-in baggage.

I think you should re-post this on the top of every page in the thread, save some members making tit's of themselves foolish posts!!

[ginjag]

Okay ... so does this mean that Thai Air will offer up more charging points so that we can plug in and recharge those Lithium batteries that already power our devises? Good luck with that idea!

Are they kidding? Come on, what is next... The actual batteries that are already in our devises? Bik pens that even pilots fear being used as a stabbing weapon? The amount of booze served is in and of itself a greater potential threat on a plane. Then what about the O2 cylinders carried for emergencies... when were they last serviced/inspected? The lighter that the 'security monitor watchers' never seem to notice (thank God if you are a smoker). Come on... the small power pack devises are not really an issue. The greater threat are the big ones (aircraft system grade) being shipped in the hold of the aircraft that are the bigger worry here. Not to mention the large cardboard boxes that seem to be part of someone's checked luggage that just fly through security.

Lithium batteries are an issue for there have been instances where problems have arisen with them. But they pale in comparison to the instances of unruly passengers. Should they be a concern? Sure. Everything getting on a plane should be considered a potential threat. For the aircraft is a sealed container flying at 30,000+ feet. But to say that a power pack about an inch long and 1/2 inch wide that produces somewhere between 2200mAh and 6000mAh (depending on your need... though the former has enough to charge your average iPhone one time) the issue with them over heating and bursting into flames is so small that you would need a microscope to examine their potential to become a threat to the cabin.

There are greater concerns For Thai Air and the others to worry about after all. I say ban the hell out of the Knee protector (a devise that does not allow the person in front of you from reclining their dam seat). That just makes people angry as shown on that flight in the US.

Ha Ha, and a stick should be provided to knock the passenger on the head when he quickly reclines with a thud as you are eating your food. The battery thing is important, BUT other matters should be tackled, and Thai should prioritize first. First class passengers are not as violent as economy, because they have stainless knives and forks, economy have plastic. But please note no sharp articles are allowed to be taken on board, Plastic knives are sharper weapons than the steel ones.

[phil2803]

Exactly as I was saying.

OK, hold the phone. On the Thai Airways Facebook page, they have uploaded an infographic showing that you CAN bring most batteries on board, but can NOT have them in check-in baggage.

I think you should re-post this on the top of every page in the thread, save some members making tit's of themselves foolish posts!!