It’s the Galaxy Note all over again. Major U.S. airline Southwest has announced new restrictions on power banks during flights because they might catch fire.
Currently, U.S. airlines prohibit passengers from putting power banks, which use lithium batteries, in checked luggage. However, Southwest is now requiring passengers to refrain from using their power banks in carry-on luggage that goes in the overhead bins, due to risk of overheating. While such occurrences are still rare, the Federal Aviation Administration has recorded nine confirmed incidents in 2025.
This has been enough for Southwest to issue its new requirements. Starting last week, passengers began receiving pop-up notifications from their Southwest app while checking in for their flights. The notices ask passengers to keep power banks out of their bags and “in plain sight” while in use. This allows flight attendants to quickly identify and extinguish the source if one of them does overheat and start a fire.
