Hazards

Hazards exist when it comes to transporting lithium batteries by aircraft, including an overheat event or fire event.

Overheat Event

If an electrical smell from a portable electronic device (PED) is detected, or a PED is suspected of overheating, the passenger should be asked to take precautions, as follow:

• Turn off the device immediately.
• If the PED is plugged into the aircraft power supply, the power supply should be disconnected if safe to do so.
• The in-seat power should also be turned off.

Although a PED may be off, unstable batteries can still ignite, and so the PED must remain off and monitored closely for the remainder of the flight.

Fire Event

As with any fire occurring in the cabin, the use of PPE, such as fire gloves and PBE, should be considered, but it is important this does not delay the response to the incident. Training guides provide details about the series of steps to be followed in the case of a fire event. Some of these steps are carried out simultaneously by multiple crewmembers.