Southwest: new battery rule

Southwest Airlines will start limiting passengers to one portable charger on April 20, tightening its battery rules beyond its current policy. (pcmag.com) Southwest’s current help page says passengers may bring up to 20 spare batteries or power banks, but they must stay in a carry-on bag or on the passenger, stay under 100 watt-hours, and remain visible when used onboard. (southwest.com) The airline’s new rule, first reported April 13, cuts that allowance to one power bank per passenger, bars storing it in an overhead bin, and says it cannot be recharged from an in-seat outlet during the flight. (pcmag.com) Federal rules already require spare lithium batteries, including power banks, to travel in carry-on bags only, not checked luggage. The Federal Aviation Administration says those batteries can overheat in a chain reaction called thermal runaway, which can produce smoke, fire, or extreme heat. (faa.gov) The Transportation Security Administration’s public guidance matches that baseline: power banks are allowed in carry-on bags and banned from checked bags. The Federal Aviation Administration also says airline rules can be stricter than federal minimums. (tsa.gov) (faa.gov) The International Civil Aviation Organization, the United Nations aviation body, adopted new power-bank restrictions on March 27, 2026. Those rules limit passengers to two power banks and prohibit recharging them in flight. (icao.int) Southwest’s one-bank cap goes further than that new international standard. The airline has not posted the April 20 change on its public battery-policy page yet, which still shows the older 20-battery limit. (icao.int) (southwest.com) The safety backdrop is a steady stream of onboard battery events. The Federal Aviation Administration keeps a running log of lithium-battery incidents involving smoke, fire, or extreme heat on aircraft and says the list is not complete. (faa.gov) A separate Southwest disruption on Monday added to the attention around the airline. Flight WN2451 operated on April 13 from Ontario International Airport to Burbank after a routing change, and Southwest’s public flight-status page says the carrier provides current updates through its tracker. (airportia.com) (southwest.com) For passengers, the practical change is simple: starting April 20, a backup battery on Southwest will need to be packed in the cabin, kept close at hand, and limited to one. (pcmag.com)