Recent Updates to the Regulations

After hoverboards exploded, tablets caught fire, and a host of lithium battery incidents on aircraft made the news in recent years, the IATA updated its regulations to further increase the safety of shipments of lithium batteries, effective in 2017. In March of 2019 the DOT issued a Final Rule on the topic of Lithium Batteries as well, aligning to international standards. The most important updates are as follows:

• Every packaging item that contains lithium batteries must bear a "Cargo Aircraft Only" label, or similar statement label, in addition to all other required marks and labels.This is applicable no matter the mode of transport.
• Standalone lithium-ion cells and batteries are prohibited as cargo on passenger aircraft.
• Lithium-ion cells and batteries that are not packed with or contained in equipment may not be shipped at a state of charge greater than thirty percent.
• The number of packages per consignment or overpack is limited to a single package when using alternative provisions for small lithium cell or battery shipments via air.

To learn more about Lithium Batteries HAZMAT visit our DOT Lithium Batteries HAZMAT Online Training web page.