GENEVA: Travellers are advised to monitor their electronic devices during flights after a plane flying from Europe to the US was forced to make an unscheduled landing when smoke emerged from a passenger’s power bank.
It was the second such incident within two weeks. In both cases, electronic devices were the cause – devices that, according to the airline, have not been permitted for use on board throughout the Lufthansa Group since the beginning of the year.
It makes sense for passengers to check their rules of their airline before packing and travelling, to prevent danger and ensure devices are not placed in the wrong area by mistake.
Lufthansa says power banks may neither be used nor charged on board Lufthansa Group airlines flights. Each passenger may carry a maximum of two power banks in their carry-on baggage.
The devices may only be stored in the seat pocket, on the passenger’s person, or in their carry-on luggage under the seat.
“For safety reasons, transporting power banks and e-cigarettes in checked baggage or storing them in the overhead compartments is not permitted,” Lufthansa says in its latest rules, introduced in early 2026.
“Power banks with a capacity between 100 Wh and 160 Wh must be approved by the airline in advance,” the airline says. Approved medical devices are exempt from the regulation.
The regulation is aligned with the current recommendations of several international aviation authorities, Lufthansa notes. So passengers, do check the rules of the airline you are flying with.
“The same regulations also apply to e-cigarettes.”
The interrupted Lufthansa subsidiary Swiss flight was bound for Boston but touched down in Dublin due to the incident, the airline says. “The reason was smoke developing on board, caused by a power bank,” Swiss says.
When that happens, an emergency signal is sent to gain landing priority, but this does not constitute an emergency landing. The 206 passengers were taken to hotels while the airline arranged onward travel, it said.
That came after a Swiss flight from Zurich to New York made an unscheduled landing in Bangor, in the US state of Maine in July due to smoke in the cabin. The cause was a charging case for headphones that had fallen between the seats, where it became trapped and was damaged. – dpa
