Southwest Airlines Limits Passengers to One Power Bank Per Flight Starting April 2026

Southwest Airlines is cutting the number of portable chargers passengers may bring on board from as many as 20 to just one, a sweeping restriction set to take effect April 20 that reflects growing alarm over lithium battery fires in aircraft cabins.

The new rule, announced through an internal employee memo on April 7 by Dave Hunt, Southwest's Vice President of Safety and Security, also prohibits passengers from recharging power banks using in-seat power outlets during flights. Each device must carry a maximum capacity of 100 watt-hours and must be stored in the under-seat area or kept on the passenger's person at all times. Overhead bin storage and checked baggage are both off-limits for portable chargers.

Hunt framed the policy as part of the airline's 2026 Safety and Security Objectives, writing in the memo that the restrictions will "strengthen our ability to contain and mitigate lithium battery incidents, including reducing the risk of battery fires."

The Federal Aviation Administration recorded 97 lithium battery incidents involving smoke, fire, or extreme heat aboard planes in 2025, up from 89 in 2024, which was itself a record at the time. By April 1, 2026, 14 incidents had already been verified for the current year, with seven more pending confirmation. The FAA calculates that such incidents now occur at an average of roughly 1.3 times per week, and since March 2006 the agency has logged 648 verified cases. A 2024 report by UL Standards and Engagement found battery incidents on aircraft rose approximately 15% over five years.

Jeff Marootian, the organization's CEO, identified awareness as a central challenge: "A huge part of the concern here is seeing that number of incidents continue to increase, correlating, of course, to the number of devices that people are bringing on planes." He added that most passengers remain unaware of the risks.

At the heart of the danger is a phenomenon called thermal runaway, which the FAA has warned can occur without warning due to damage, overheating, water exposure, overcharging, improper packing, or spontaneous manufacturing defects. Nearly 60% of thermal runaway incidents on aircraft happen near a passenger's seat.

High-profile fires have made the risks concrete. On January 28, 2025, an Air Busan Airbus A321 caught fire at Gimhae International Airport in Busan, South Korea, while preparing to depart for Hong Kong. All 176 occupants were evacuated, 27 were injured, and the aircraft was destroyed, with a portable power bank suspected as the cause. South Korea responded with a national ban on overhead bin storage of power banks across its airlines. In March 2023, Spirit Airlines Flight 259 from Dallas to Orlando made an emergency landing in Jacksonville, Florida, after a battery fire ignited in an overhead bin.

Southwest's new rule goes further than the International Civil Aviation Organization's updated guidance, which recommends a two-power-bank limit per passenger alongside a ban on in-flight recharging. The airline is not alone in tightening restrictions: carriers within the Lufthansa Group have introduced their own limits, while Air New Zealand and Taiwan's EVA Air have implemented broader bans covering all portable charging devices, including wireless headphones.

The April 20 restriction also marks Southwest's second significant policy tightening in under a year. On May 28, 2025, the carrier became the first major U.S. airline to require power banks to remain in plain sight while in use, allowing flight crews to spot overheating quickly. Flight attendants are already equipped with fire-resistant bags and insulated gloves to manage devices that overheat mid-flight.

Southwest said it will inform passengers of the new policy at booking and during airport check-in. As a longer-term offset, the airline's entire fleet is expected to feature in-seat power outlets by mid-2027, reducing passenger dependence on portable chargers altogether.