Aviation

US airlines to limit ‘smart luggage’ over battery fire fears

According to CNET news Many major US airlines have announced restrictions on so-called smart luggage out of concern their lithium ion batteries may pose a fire risk.

Smart luggage tends to contain a USB port for charging devices, GPS to track the bag’s location, remote locking and built-in weight sensors. Some even sport a motor to propel the bag for ease of movement through an airport.

These features require power that is often supplied by built-in lithium ion batteries, which contain highly flammable liquid. Worried the batteries could cause a fire in the cargo hold that would go undetected, airlines are instituting new rules that require fliers remove the batteries when they check their luggage and carry them into the passenger cabin.

“Beginning Jan. 15, customers who travel with a smart bag must be able to remove the battery in case the bag has to be checked at any point in the customer’s journey. If the battery cannot be removed, the bag will not be allowed,” American Airlines said in a statement on Friday. Delta and Alaska soon followed suit with similar policies on their flights.

In the past couple of years, the use of lithium ion batteries has been linked to fires and spewing smoke in a slew of products, including Samsung’s now-canceled Galaxy Note 7, hoverboards, and Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner.

The Federal Aviation Administration issued a warning about the batteries last year, urging airlines to examine the risks associated with transporting lithium batteries as cargo, including “the potential risk for a catastrophic hull loss.” The alert covered batteries being transported as components and not those already inside devices such as laptops, tablets, phones or hoverboards.

However, many bags have batteries that can’t be removed, and that has smart luggage makers like Bluesmart worried.

“We are saddened by these latest changes to some airline regulations and feel it is a step back not only for travel technology, but that it also presents an obstacle to streamlining and improving the way we all travel,” Bluesmart told CNN.

Related Topics:Airport smart bags travelers

Aviation

No More Jet Airways. Supreme Court Says “No Choice”, Orders Liquidation

Jet Airways was once one of India’s leading airlines, known for its service and extensive network. Founded in 1993, it served millions of passengers, connecting cities across India and international destinations.

However, since grounding its flights in April 2019, Jet Airways has struggled to navigate financial turbulence, leading to years of efforts to revive the airline and return it to the skies.

On Thursday, the Supreme Court ordered the liquidation of Jet Airways, citing “no choice” but to take this decisive step after the resolution plan failed to meet creditor obligations. The court invoked its extraordinary powers under Article 142, which allows it to make orders for “complete justice” in any case, overriding previous tribunal rulings.

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The Jalan-Kalrock Consortium (JKC), which had won the bid to revive Jet, faced criticism for not fulfilling payment commitments to creditors, which included major banks like the State Bank of India and Punjab National Bank.

The Supreme Court’s ruling pointed to “peculiar and alarming” issues surrounding the resolution plan’s implementation, leading to its conclusion that liquidation was the only feasible outcome.

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Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, alongside Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, emphasized that while liquidation should be a last resort, it was necessary as the resolution plan was “no longer capable of implementation.”

In line with this decision, the court ordered that the ₹200 crore already infused by JKC be forfeited and directed the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) in Mumbai to appoint a liquidator to oversee the process.

JKC, a partnership between Murari Jalan, a UAE-based Indian entrepreneur, and Florian Fritsch, a Jet shareholder through Kalrock Capital Partners Limited, had taken ownership of Jet Airways two years after it was grounded. The consortium’s inability to fulfill its financial obligations has now led to this final verdict, marking the end of an era for Jet Airways in India.