Southwest airlines bans hidden chargers in carry-on baggage to prevent fires in airplanes. On May 28, 2025 No more charging your phone from a hidden power bank inside your carry-on during Southwest Airline flights.
Don’t worry — in this video, I’ll explain exactly what that means, why it’s happening, and give you travel tips so you’re fully prepared and stress-free on your next flight.
Power banks, also known as portable chargers, have lithium-ion batteries. Lithium-ion batteries can combust. Because of fires on several airplanes in Asia recently, on Air Busan, for example, many airlines made changes to their carry-on rules banning power banks from being used in-flight. But Southwest Airlines is the first in the United States to change its rules requiring that power banks must be in plain sight if being used during the flight.
What this means for you:
That means that passengers are not allowed to charge their phones in their suitcases. It means they must have their portable charger on the tray table or in the airplane seat pocket…which technically is hidden still. This new airline requirement is their way of having combustible lithium-ion batteries within reach during flights, not in carry-on luggage in the overhead bins. If someone’s carry-on suitcase has a portable charger that catches on fire mid-flight inside their luggage in the overhead bin, and they also have hairspray or something else that could catch on fire, the spread of the fire could get out of control.
The good news: You can use power banks in an airplane. This new rule just helps us be safer by making sure those power banks are only in the seatback pocket. A travel tip is to think about your routine for a flight. If your phone is in airplane mode, your battery may not need to be recharged mid-flight. When we travel standby, we never know if we will get on a flight, so we could spend hours in the airport. So, after that time and then a long flight, plus landing and touring all day before we can get to a hotel, I need a power bank.
I now have this one by Anker since my old one is an off-brand. Here is why I like it:
- The cord is attached
- It is magnetic
- It has a stand, so if I am watching a show on my phone while charging I can be hands free and follow the Southwest Airline rule that it is visible.
The Federal Aviation Administration uses the term “thermal runaway” to describe the process of a power bank catching on fire.
Here is how to know if you have a dangerous battery:
- If portable charger battery is damaged
- If the battery is overheated
- If the power bank has been exposed to water
- If the power bank was overcharged or other factors. I am guilty of that!
- Here is what you do: If it expands or swells up, the travel tip is to tell flight attendants immediately. Alert the crew if your power bank is so hot that you can barely touch it. Flight attendants have kits onboard to extinguish fires like that.
- Another travel tip is for lithium-ion batteries in power banks. Charge your phone before your flight so you do not need a portable charger while flying.
Travel Tips for FAQ:
Dry batteries like double AA or AAA are not lithium-ion batteries. They are allowed in any of your luggage.
One frequently asked question about power banks and other electronics that passengers fly with is: Do I need to take them out at airport security?
In the TSA line, all electronic cords stay in your carry-on bags unless the officers tell you to take out the electronic device that is larger than a phone. But the cords, the batteries stay in your bags until you get to the airplane. So if flying Southwest Airlines, just have your power bank in your personal item, and either
- Do not use it during the flight
- Follow their new rule by having it visible when charging your phone.