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Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

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Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#481

Post by tsimionescu »

KennyBlanken wrote: post #390
layer8 wrote: post #313

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Translation of the cited statement by the Lufthansa spokesperson: “ Baggage trackers belong to the category of Portable Electronic Devices and are therefore subject to the Dangerous Goods regulations issued by the International Civil Aviation Organization for carriage in aircraft. Accordingly, the trackers must be deactivated during the flight due to their transmission function, similar to cell phones, laptops, table…

So do cargo monitoring (temperature/tilt/vibration/tampering) devices, which are in a lot of commercial cargo - especially vaccine shipments, but any sort of sensitive equipment being air-freighted. So do wireless earbuds, watches both smart and "dumb", hearing aides, sport sensors including chest heartrate monitors and bike sensors/computers, travel alarms, book lights, e-readers, keychain flashlights, film cameras,…

Except that Lufthansa simply replied by citing a ICAO regulation - no more, no less. They have not "banned AirTags", they simply stated an existing regulation that applies to any aircraft.

Whether they actually enforce that regulation in any way remains to be seen, but they couldn't have given any other answer (or else risk being investigated by civil aviation authorities for not properly observing existing flight safety rules).

If you want to convince anyone that they should allow lithium batteries with some particular characteristics to be used in devices that are not turned on, you don't have to convince Lufthansa or any other airline, you have to convince the ICAO and/or national civil aviation bodies, since it's their rule that Lufthansa was citing.

Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#482

Post by dymk »

Zak wrote: post #438
kylehotchkiss wrote: post #151

Interestingly, they're not an issue in carry on bags. Which sit about 3 feet higher than a checked bag inside of an airplane.

The main concern with lithium batteries is fire. A fire in the cabin can be detected and contained much faster than in the cargo hold. Fire is probably not a realistic concern with an AirTag, Tile, or similar low-powered device using a tiny battery, but the regulations are not nuanced. Devices powered by lithium batteries are supposed to be turned off if they're in the cargo hold.

AirTags use normal button cell batteries, not lithium based

Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#483

Post by tsimionescu »

bdcravens wrote: post #471
josephcsible wrote: post #465

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Don't the premises "AirTags are only allowed in checked bags if they're turned off" and "AirTags can't be turned off" lead to the conclusion "AirTags aren't allowed in checked bags"?

The battery can be removed.

But you're also not allowed to transport lithium based batteries in checked luggage unless they are inside a powered-off device, I believe.

Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#484

Post by nraynaud »

nostrademons wrote: post #76

Note that the reason for airport mode is a courtesy to cell-phone carriers. It's not any air safety issue. Rather, 300-500 cell phones all trying to contact the next cell tower, multiple times per minute, would wreak havoc on cell service. https://www.inverse.com/article/51015-cell-phone-use-on-airp... At one point, when both cell phones and laptops were new, there was perhaps a risk to the airplane's electronics. Mo…

I’m a bit skeptical, bullet trains swamp towers too, they just put more towers along the tracks.

Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#485

Post by tsimionescu »

filoleg wrote: post #373
bonestamp2 wrote: post #370

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My iPad is forever in airplane mode. That way I can turn wifi off without iOS automatically turning it back on 24 hours later.

If you turn off wifi from settings instead of the control center (top right corner pull), it will stay turned off. If you turn it off from the control center, it will indeed say "Turning off WiFi until tomorrow".

Can you at least get from Control Center to the corresponding Settings page easily now (long press, hard press, etc), or is Apple dying on that hill?

Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#486

Post by tsimionescu »

kortex wrote: post #416
crystaln wrote: post #301

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The term airplane mode will persist as an anachronism forever. Some day we will have to explain to our grandchildren why disabling networks has anything to do with airplanes.

It'll be in good company with dialing, film, photograph, watching the tube, etc. Actually photo graph was already out of date, because graph had morphed from "to write" to making any kind of image. Which itself I believe meant something akin to inscription /engraving. Actually while photograph may no longer be a graph as in image on a surface, in some ways it's still an image impressed on rocks. Made using lithograph…

Don't forget floppy disks being enshrined as the Save icon - that has to be one of the shortest lives devices to give rise to such an anachronism.

Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#487

Post by Hnrobert42 »

layer8 wrote: post #428
RC_ITR wrote: post #413

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure. But to that end, are button batteries known to be susceptible to thermal runway?

See for example here: https://safetyfirst.airbus.com/lithium-batteries-safe-to-fly...

That article, while interesting, does not address button batteries. Maybe I missed it. I found it interesting that you can ship any amount of lithium batteries as cargo.

Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#488

Post by Hnrobert42 »

layer8 wrote: post #433
Zak wrote: post #431

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Both lithium-ion and lithium metal batteries that are installed in devices are allowed in checked baggage in the US and most other places. The devices must be powered off. What that means is a bit ambiguous as most modern laptops, tablets, and phones have some components powered any time a battery is installed. https://www.faa.gov/newsroom/lithium-batteries-baggage

The regulation specifically states that " the devices must be completely switched off (not in sleep or hibernation mode) ", and mobile devices normally all have a way to completely shut them down, with no components remaining active. The only exception I'm aware of are wireless earbuds (e.g. AirPods). Presumably you're not allowed to have those in checked baggage.

I would wager most people don’t realize that to completely turn off their iPhone they must adjust their settings to not use Find My even when powered off.

Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#489

Post by Hnrobert42 »

tsimionescu wrote: post #483
bdcravens wrote: post #471

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The battery can be removed.

But you're also not allowed to transport lithium based batteries in checked luggage unless they are inside a powered-off device, I believe.

I think you can as long as they are stored in such a way as to prevent an accidental short circuit.

Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#490

Post by andrewia »

layer8 wrote: post #313
leifg wrote: post #276

Knowing German I read through the sources. This article is pretty misleading. The [primary source]( https://www.watson.de/leben/urlaub%20&%20freizeit/879935671-... ) is a slightly clickbait article asking the questions: "Are AirTags allowed in checked luggage?". They reached out to Lufthanse asking them. They responded: "Luggage trackers are electronic devices so they have to be turned off when the luggage is checked…

Translation of the cited statement by the Lufthansa spokesperson: “ Baggage trackers belong to the category of Portable Electronic Devices and are therefore subject to the Dangerous Goods regulations issued by the International Civil Aviation Organization for carriage in aircraft. Accordingly, the trackers must be deactivated during the flight due to their transmission function, similar to cell phones, laptops, table…

Interesting. Since AirTags use standard CR2032 batteries, that means you could swap in an alkaline-based battery and avoid that regulation.
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