Seoul’s lithium battery rules on planes highlight growing risk for aviation

SEOUL –

South Korea tightened rules on carrying lithium batteries on planes from Saturday, highlighting a growing risk to flights worldwide from the batteries used in cellphones and e-cigarettes that can malfunction to produce smoke, fire or extreme heat.

Last year, three incidents of overheating lithium batteries on planes were recorded every fortnight across the globe by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, compared with just under one a week in 2018.

Aviation has long recognized the increasingly used batteries as a safety concern, and rules are periodically tightened in response to accidents.