The weather is getting warmer, and summer travel season is getting underway across the globe. But this year, travel comes with a new kind of turbulence: a constant stream of alarming headlines about battery fires on airplanes. From portable chargers bursting into flames mid-flight to new TSA rules targeting batteries in checked bags, battery safety has become an urgent conversation in aviation.
What’s Making Headlines?
In 2024, data revealed nearly two fires occur onboard an airplane each week. With the growing prevalence of lithium-ion batteries across consumer devices — think cell phones, tablets, laptops and portable chargers — the risk of fires is a rising threat.
Some recent examples underscore the urgency:
- A portable charger caught fire aboard a JetBlue flight, prompting an emergency response mid-air
- A near-miss incident on Hawaiian Airlines saw smoke and an electrical smell from a device caught between the plane’s seat
- Several international flights in Asia have also experienced similar emergencies, fueling global concern
How Airlines and Travelers Are Responding
Although these incidents haven’t grounded travel plans on a wide scale yet, they’re adding to a broader sense of unease among travelers already dealing with other airline safety-inspired fears.
In response, airlines are sounding the alarm. Southwest Airlines just announced they will ban lithium-ion batteries, like the ones in portable chargers and external battery packs, from both checked bags and carry-ons. Instead, they must be kept “in plain sight” so crewmembers can intervene faster in case of fire.
The TSA also recently announced new regulations that will require portable batteries be kept in carry-on luggage only. In addition, Singapore Airlines will no longer allow passengers to use or charge portable power banks during flights, and travelers are now banned from storing portable chargers in overhead bins in South Korea.
Airlines are clearly feeling pressure to take action on safety. Yet a deeper issue is starting to surface within their efforts. While these moves may reduce risk in the short term, they don’t address the heart of the problem: the batteries themselves.
Beyond Bans: What It Means to Build a Safer Battery
Standard battery design principles haven’t changed in decades — leading to many of the safety issues we’re facing today. But rather than address these issues through add-on features or process upgrades, we have to start inside the battery to truly eliminate the threat of in-flight fires. Technology is available that can prevent these fires before they can become dangerous.
One common source of battery fires is the growth of lithium dendrites — tiny, needle-like structures that grow inside the battery and can lead to short circuits. At 24M, we're addressing this challenge head-on with our Impervio separator. Designed to suppress dendrite formation and alert battery management systems of potential threats, Impervio acts as a built-in safety system.
See Impervio in action:
With proactive measures like Impervio, we can build batteries that are safer from the start.
Safer Batteries, Safer Travel
Airline policies and TSA rules are valuable tools — but they’re stopgap measures. Long-term safety requires innovation in battery technology and design. By building inherently safer batteries, we can help protect passengers and airline crews and head off a growing crisis for the aviation industry.
Explore 24M’s battery safety technologies:
