Days after a passenger’s power bank caught fire onboard an IndiGo flight, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) may put in place certain restrictions on the use of power banks onboard flights after studying global practices, news agency PTI reported.
Although the regulator has no plans to ban the use of power banks on flights, some restrictions might be brought to avoid such accidents, PTI quoted an official as saying.
The developmed comes days after a passenger’s power bank caught fire onboard an IndiGo flight while taxiing at the Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport on October 19.
The global practices are being looked and after that, a decision will be taken, the official said.
IndiGo allows power banks in cabin luggage only if power is visible on the battery and those with more than 160 Wh are not allowed on the aircraft.
In checked in luggage, each passenger is limited to a maximum of 15 portable electronic devices (PED). For lithium metal batteries, the lithium metal content must not exceed 2 g and for lithium ion batteries, the watt-hour must not exceed 100 Wh, according to Indigo’s official website.
What led to the restrictions?
After the October 19 incident on the Dimapur-bound IndiGo plane, the aviation regulator has been looking into the use of power banks onboard flights.
The fire was soon brought under control by the cabin crew and extinguished shortly.
An IndiGo Spokesperson said that the flight, 6E 2107, operating from Delhi to Dimapur, Nagaland, returned to bay due to a minor fire triggered by a passenger’s personal electronic equipment, HT reported earlier.
It added that the concerned authorities were informed immediately as per the protocol.
“There are no injuries reported. All passengers and crew onboard are safe. After all the necessary checks the aircraft has been cleared for operations,” the spokesperson said.
Civil aviation minister K Rammohan Naidu, on October 25 said the DGCA will review the incident.
Lithium batteries on aircrafts
Regarding carrying electronic goods, especially those with lithium batteries onboard an aircraft, strict norms are already put in place.
Earlier this month, there was an incident where a lithium battery kept in the overhead compartment of an Air China aircraft caught fire. The aircraft was operating from Hangzhou to Seoul, as per reports cited by PTI.
