New security rules for batteries on planes
Posted by Desiree Everts
If you don’t want to lose your spare lithium batteries for your camera, notebook or cell phone, you might want to pack carefully for your next flight.
New rules from the Transportation and Security Administration that take effect on January 1 ban travelers from carrying loose lithium batteries in checked baggage. Passengers are allowed to pack two spare batteries in their carry-on bag, as long as they’re in clear plastic baggies.
Fortunately, you don’t have to worry about the batteries that are already installed in the devices you’re bringing. The TSA has said it’s safe to check in items like a laptop or iPhone that already have the batteries in place.
The agency said that loose lithium batteries not installed in devices pose a fire risk to passenger planes. Recently, the National Transportation Safety Board could not rule out the possibility that lithium batteries started a fire in a plane at the Philadelphia National Airport last year, according to the Associated Press. Full article here, thanks news.com
Not a lot I can say about this one, because unlike many of the TSA’s asinine rules there may be a basis of fact behind this prohibition … loose batteries may have cause a fire on an airliner last year.
So if you’re traveling to the Philippines and you plan to carry extra batteries for cell phone, PDA, Lap top, etc., better to read up on the rules before you get to the airport, all packed and ready to board your flight.
One of the most annoying and constitutionally indefensible aspaects of the regulation the TSA operates under is their absolute power to seize otherwise legal property of US citizens with no recourse. To add insult to injury, they then sell off this property at action … yet make no provision to allow the citizen to, for example, send the property home, store the property for later pickup, etc. Even if a citizen wished to pay for such services, it’s not allowed. Sad commentary … but hey, nothing to do but learn the rules in advance … we no longer have protection from illegal search and seizure.
In America your property will be seized and sold at auction.
But when I accidentally arrived in a Chinese airport with a Swiss Army pocketknife they (In Communist China) offered to hold it for up to 3 weeks so I wouldn’t lose it.
China leading the way for freedom and reasonable treatment of passengers!
This is how low America has sunk.
I would point out that the shoe bomber, underwear bomber and all the other threats have one thing in common,,, none of them were caught by TSA. Every one of them were caught by other passengers and flight crews.
BTW you are also required to put tape over the battery terminals.
I will say, in fairness (and there is NOT a lot of fairness involved when it comes to the US TSA), they do now have a program where you can ship home unintentionally carried items, like pocketknives, cigarette lighters and such. It is, of course, at the passenger’s expense, but it is a step up from illegal seizure of personal property.
Your comments on how utterly ineffective the TSA has been in capturing any terrorists are bang on. My solution would be to have a loaded gun attached by a lanyard to every seat on a plane. That would take care of any shoe bombers in double quick time. Contrary to movie myths, a few shots, even if they penetrate the pressure hull of the aircraft are inconsequential to safety … but armed passengers would have successfully prevented every incident of terrorism I know of, particularly the tragedy of 11 Sep 2011.
As a US citizen, it amazes me how after we fought a war of independence over what was felt to be repressive and invasive denial of personal rights by the Crown, we now have molded our country into one that is much more draconian and fascist than England ever was. Sad commentary on the passage of time, I’m afraid.
In the other sense of “afraid”, I’m shocked and disappointed by how fearful my own country has become. My fellow Americans seem literally afraid of their own shadow.
I’m kind of a sucker for WWII documentaries and war movies which are somewhat true to life, like “The Thin Red Line”, and I absolutely marvel that the USA won r=the war. I doubt we’d be able to do it today … might as well learn to speak German and Japanese, and prepare marketing materials to sell them junk mortgage bonds and other “financial services” government-backed crookedness … about the only thing the US currently excels at.
For those who don’t know it, James has authored and published a gr4eat book on this subject, go visit: http://www.smartsafetraveler.com/ to learn more.