alt Hacker NewsThe security theater needs to go on. In the meantime batteries represent a much bigger risk with potential in flight fires but I guess nobody cares enough to do anything about it.
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We flew a couple legs on Virgin Atlantic yesterday. The info session before takeoff made several mentions of batteries - unplug devices when not on use / not in your seat, if your battery gets hot, don't leave your seat/notify a flight attendant immediately. (I think they have containers to try to contain lithium fires onboard FWIW.)
Recently flew through china where they asked 3 times if if i had a portable charger and made everyone sign declarations to that effect.
If batteries were standardized and replaceable I bet they would force you to not bring your own, and only ones purchasable passed the gate could be used. Maybe that a silver lining to the repairability issues.
south Korean airlines are banning battery use in flight now https://www.timeout.com/asia/news/psa-major-south-korean-air...
other asian carriers will say they can't be in overhead compartments
When gate-checking carryon bags, staff told passengers to take batteries out of the carryons.
It seems like something that is high risk during flight shouldn't be left to passenger compliance with spoken instructions.
Batteries are such an incredible oversight if we are trying to control for kinetic energy.
100 watts for an hour ~= 36000 watts for ten seconds. Every fully charged laptop roughly has enough energy to bring an automobile up to highway speed (once). How many of these laptops exist on a typical flight?