NEW DELHI: India has barred the use of power banks to charge portable electronic devices inflight. Charging power banks by plugging them to in-seat power supply systems that airlines provide is also no longer allowed.Permitted only in hand bags, flyers are no longer supposed to keep power banks and batteries in overhead bins. This comes after instances of lithium batteries catching fire mid-flight.DGCA recently issued a ‘dangerous goods advisory circular’ to minimise risks from lithium battery-powered devices carried by passengers and crew members.The regulator has directed airlines to make inflight announcements regarding the new rules. Passengers need to “immediately inform cabin crew if any device emits heat, smoke or an unusual odour”, the rules say, adding that airlines must “promptly report all safety issues and occurrences related to lithium battery incidents to DGCA”. Some other countries and airlines, including Emirates and Singapore Airlines, had issued similar restrictions for the same reason last year.Aviation experts warn that airlines should strictly implement the one-hand-bag-per-passenger rule in wake of this new fear. The reason: While batteries and power banks are not allowed in check-in bags, airlines very often take hand bags — which have portable electronic devices (PEDs) and power banks — at boarding gates or aerobridgesfrom passengers and keep them in the belly of aircraft, as overhead bins are full.“This defeats the purpose of not allowing batteries in check-in bags. A battery catching fire in baggage hold, remaining undetected and then spreading can have serious consequences. The issue of how much cabin bags flyers carry onboard needs to be tackled either by airlines on their own. And if they can’t do so, rules need to be in place to ensure lithium batteries do not make it to baggage hold,” said a senior pilot.The new DGCA circular says: “The widespread usage of lithium batteries in various rechargeable devices has led to an increase in carriage of lithium batteries by air. Power banks, portable chargers, and similar devices containing lithium batteries can act as ignition sources and potentially initiate on-board fires. Lithium batteries placed in overhead stowage bins or within carry-on baggage may be obscured, difficult to access, or not readily monitored by passengers or crew members. This may result in delayed detection of smoke or fire and response actions, increasing the potential hazard to flight safety.”Lithium battery fires are very “energetic” and can cause PEDs to explode. “A lithium battery fire can be started by uncontrolled heating, overcharging, crushing or internal short circuit triggered by poor manufacturing quality, aged batteries or damage due to mishandling. Unlike other fires, lithium battery fires may be self-sustaining and require special methods to handle. The general preventive measures to minimise risks of lithium battery fire may include minimising possibilities of heating of devices; early detection in case of fire; and reinforcement of effectiveness of firefighting procedures,” it adds.
