Sorry, Laptop Not Allowed: Flights Will Soon Ban Laptops In Check-in Luggage!

As our lives are getting filled with gadgets and electronic items, the dangers are also increasing. For instance, the danger of any electronic gadget like laptops suddenly catching fire.

And if that gadget is tugged into a check-in luggage of a flight, then the danger is real – It can engulf the entire aircraft, and endanger everyone who is travelling.

And the worst part, no one will come to know because that faulty gadget is inside check-in luggage.

This is the reason that airlines from all over the world are now planning to ban laptops in check-in luggage.

Will this prove to be a viable solution?

Laptops Banned!

At the time of writing, The International Civil Aviation Organization’s (ICAO) is examining a research paper on  “PEDs carried by passengers and crew”, wherein researchers and agencies have explained the dangers of carrying such PEDs or Personal Electronic Devices and the safety hazards it puts across for all passengers.

In fact, The American Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has submitted in the report of ICAO that in case a PED such as smartphone or laptop catches fire, it “could lead to loss of aircraft”.

ICAO is a UN agency, and their security advisory is taken pretty seriously by Aviation authorities all over the world. As per reports, The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is closely monitoring the situation, and if ICAO bans laptops in check-in luggage, then it shall be implemented in India as well.

In their report, ICAO observes:

“FAA fire safety branch conducted 10 tests utilising a fully charged laptop computer inside a suitcase. A heater was placed against a lithium ion cell in the battery of a laptop to force it into thermal runaway…. it was concluded that if a PED is packed in a suitcase with an aerosol can and a thermal runaway event occurs, there is the potential for an aerosol can explosion…. (In some cases) the fire suppression system of the aircraft is then compromised, which could lead to the loss of the aircraft,”

Dangers of PEDs In Aircrafts

Last year, we all witnessed the dangers of such electronic gadgets inside aircraft, when Aviation authorities all over the world banned Samsung Galaxy Note 7 in flights. DGCA too banned this phone on flights, and ordered the handset to be switched off, in case it is being carried inside check-in luggage.

This was the first time when a particular handset was banned in aircrafts, and this resulted in erosion of $26 billion from Samsung’s market capital, as they recalled millions of handsets, and investors lost their trust.

Even the replaced Samsung Galaxy Note 7 caught fire later!

Few days back, another Samsung handset caught fire mid-air between Delhi and Indore, and the crew members didn’t even have a fire extinguisher. This time, the handset was kept in handbag, not in check-in luggage.

Do you think PEDs such as laptops and phones should be banned in check-in luggage? Or electronics manufacturing firms should make better gadgets?

Do let us know by commenting right here!