Airlines are rethinking how passengers carry and use portable batteries after a serious in-flight fire in South Korea. Germany’s Lufthansa is at the forefront in Europe, introducing new restrictions to prevent similar incidents.
New Restrictions for Onboard Use
Lufthansa now prohibits passengers from using power banks to charge devices during flights or connecting them to seatback entertainment systems. While the batteries can still be carried in cabin luggage, they can no longer be placed in overhead compartments and must instead be kept on the passenger or under the seat. Checked baggage rules remain unchanged.
Limits on Battery Size and Quantity
The airline has set a maximum capacity of 100 watt hours (around 27,000 mAh) for all power banks. Passengers wishing to carry larger batteries must notify the airline in advance and obtain approval; otherwise, the devices may be confiscated and destroyed. Each traveler is now limited to a maximum of two power banks per flight. These rules apply to all Lufthansa-operated and affiliated airlines, including Swiss, Eurowings, Austrian Airlines, Discover, Brussels Airlines, Edelweiss, and Air Dolomiti.
Learning From a Dangerous Fire
The policy change follows a January 2025 incident on a South Korean Air Busan Airbus A321, when a power bank stored in an overhead compartment caught fire while the plane was still on the ground. Twenty-seven passengers were injured, but everyone was able to evacuate safely using emergency slides. Investigations confirmed the battery as the cause of the fire, which engulfed the fuselage in minutes.
The incident has sparked a global review of lithium battery safety in aviation, prompting airlines worldwide to adopt stricter measures to reduce the risk of onboard fires.
