A large number of airlines have now banned a laptop computer on board amid fears it could catch fire.
The airline list keeps on growing after Apple’s recall of its 15ins MacBook Pro model that was sold between September 2015 and February 2017.
It’s now emerging that different airlines have their own rules regarding the MacBook so it’s recommended that passengers check with an airline for details about their MacBook Pro ban policy before heading to the airport or they could find themselves in a tricky position at the check-in desk.
Apple said the battery in the affected laptops can overheat, potentially swelling or catching fire.
The Federal Aviation Administration in the USA has stressed to airlines to follow safety guidelines issued in 2016 about consumer electronics with recalled batteries.
Under these rules, electronics with recalled batteries – including the affected MacBook Pros - should not be allowed on flights as cargo or in carry-on luggage in the USA.
Business Insider has just compiled a list of airlines, agencies and countries that have banned or restricted the recalled MacBook Pro from flights.
To see if your laptop is affected, visit Apple's recall page and enter the serial number which can be found by clicking the small Apple logo in the upper-left corner of the menu bar and then clicking About This Mac.
The list of airlines:
All airlines operating in the United States. The FAA ban means that US airlines, including cargo carriers, and airlines flying to or from the US should not allow the laptops on board.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency said that the MacBook Pro models should be switched off and not used during flights. It stopped short of a full ban like its US counterpart.
Qantas has banned all 15-inch MacBook Pro computers from checked luggage, including unaffected models. While it has continued to allow the laptop in carry-on bags, passengers must leave it switched off during flight.
Virgin Australia has banned all Apple MacBooks regardless of model or size from checked baggage, although it still allows them in the cabin.
Etihad has banned all MacBook Pro computers regardless of size or model from checked luggage. They can still be brought in the passenger cabin.
The others to ban them completely are Tui, Thomas Cook, Air Transat, Air Italy, Singapore Airlines and Thai Airways.
While most overheating devices on board planes can be placed in special fire containment bags such as AvSax, passenger flights without them have had to make costly emergency landings because of what the FAA sometimes calls “a dangerous evolution of heat.”
AvSax are now on more than 15,373 aircraft operated by 75 airline companies across the world – including some of the biggest and best-known.
AvSax – which won the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in 2018 - has been used 31 times to deal with emergencies since the start of 2017. Deployment is so effective that extremely expensive diversions to alternate airports are avoided.
