People travelling by air will now be required to carry all spare or loose batteries, no matter the type, in their hand-luggage.
The Civil Aviation Authority said all batteries posed a fire risk, including common ones such as AA and AAA. Photo: 123RF
The International Air Transport Association Dangerous Goods regulation has been amended to include dry-cell and nickel-metal hydride batteries, and comes into force today.
The Civil Aviation Authority said all batteries posed a fire risk, including common ones such as AA and AAA.
There is also a 20 spare battery and powerbank limit per person, with requirements they must be protected in retail packaging, individual bags or with tape placed over the exposed terminals.
CAA aviation security group manager Karen Irwin said previously, the focus had been on lithium batteries, which could generate heat, but latest international advice recommended extending that to all batteries.
"If they are rolling around in your luggage, they can set of a spark. So it's much easier to have them in your hand-luggage, where if a problem arises, we can deal with it quickly," Irwin said.
Any spare or loose batteries put through check-in will be picked up by screening and removed, she said.
The CAA website states batteries that power any device – mobile phone, laptop, medical device - can go in checked-in baggage, but only if they are in the device, and the device is turned off.
*This article originally published on 1 January was updated on 6 January to correct that the rule applies to 'spare and loose batteries' and not removable ones stored safely in devices that are switched off.