Korean Air bans Apple, Dell notebooks on board

Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
Korean Air has forbidden the use of Dell and Apple laptop PCs during flight due to the risk of battery explosion, according to the Korean Times.



The Korean national flag carrier said yesterday that the ban was put in place after the two computer manufacturers announced a recall of batteries used in some of their notebook models.



"Due to the risk of onboard fire, we are not allowing passengers to use certain brands of laptops on the plane. Safety always comes first for us," a Korean Air spokesperson told the Times, adding they were unsure when the ban would be lifted.



Although the airline is prohibiting all models of Dell notebooks and Apple's PowerBook and iBook systems, users can reportedly continue to carry them on board the flight if they separate the batteries into checked baggage.



"We have put notices at check-in counters and boarding gates but we don?t inspect all carry-on baggage," a gate attendant told the Times.



Korean Air is the second airline to restrict the in-flight use of Dell and Apple notebooks in recent weeks. Late last month, Australia's Qantas announced a similar policy.



Both Dell and Apple have questioned the airlines' decision. An Apple Korea spokesperson called the new policy an overreaction, while a Dell product manager said the airlines could "easily check out whether a laptop uses a Sony battery or other brand instead of banning them all."



In what has been dubbed the two largest consumer electronics recalls in history, Dell last month recalled 4.1 million notebook batteries followed by Apple recalling 1.8 million -- all of which included cells manufactured by Sony Corp.



The notebook battery packs contain cells of rolled up metal strips. Sony has said that during production, crimping the rolls left tiny shards of metal loose in the cells, which could cause the batteries to short-circuit.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 57
    what da **ck?



    fine, I will fly Asiana to go to Korea then. I will miss smokin hot stewardesses in Korean Air though.
  • Reply 2 of 57
    I guess people will just have to drink more and sleep more on their flights.
  • Reply 3 of 57
    Wouldn't it be worse if the battery caught fire in the hold, as there'd be no humans there to put out the flames?
  • Reply 4 of 57
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Robin Hood


    Wouldn't it be worse if the battery caught fire in the hold, as there'd be no humans there to put out the flames?



    I had the same thought. What are the odds the battery explodes even if there's no power being drawn, due to the nature of the design defect?
  • Reply 5 of 57
    What about me with my non-Sony battery? This is utter garbage. I hate Korean Air*.



    *I have never been to Korea.
  • Reply 6 of 57
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SpamSandwich


    I had the same thought. What are the odds the battery explodes even if there's no power being drawn, due to the nature of the design defect?



    I'm no electrical engineer, but I'm pretty sure it needs to be drawing at least some power to short the circuit (shorting a circuit with no electricity running through it doesn't do much). Of course, if the laptop were left in "suspend" mode...
  • Reply 7 of 57
    Hate to be picky, but what about Sony laptops? I mean, the whole reason the Apple and Dell laptops are exploding is because of the batteries right? And those batteries are made by Sony right?



    Sooooo... doesn't it make sense that Sony would use their own batteries in their own laptops? Or do they use someone else's batteries as they know their own product is crap?!?



    Sheesh, these airlines need to stop, think and then implement. Nothing like a knee jerk reaction to make everyone relaxed and happy!



  • Reply 8 of 57
    hirohiro Posts: 2,663member
    This is the airline with the worst safety record for any airline considered "large". They can't manage to follow flight procedures consistently enough to make me dare to go onboard one of their airplanes anymore. Scariest and smelliest flight I have EVER been on was one of theirs, ungh!



    And the problems are not with battery draw, but during battery charging. You can use the battery to run the computers in safely if it's not plugged in. Or plug in the computer and leave the battery out.
  • Reply 9 of 57
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Hiro


    This is the airline with the worst safety record for any airline considered "large". They can't manage to follow flight procedures consistently enough to make me dare to go onboard one of their airplanes anymore. Scariest and smelliest flight I have EVER been on was one of theirs, ungh!



    And the problems are not with battery draw, but during battery charging. You can use the battery to run the computers in safely if it's not plugged in. Or plug in the computer and leave the battery out.



    They have one of the worst air safety records of any major airline with First Officers sitting mute while the Captain makes errors that crash planes. The only thing I am not clear on is whether this is just an overreaction to the fact that an incident would put them up there with the worst airlines in the world in terms of safety; or if it is an attempt to give Korean companies some help in the laptop and battery arena. Korea is a very xenophobic and protectionist country.
  • Reply 10 of 57
    lundylundy Posts: 4,466member
    Does this mean that Kormac77 can't get any more inside info?
  • Reply 11 of 57
    Maybe I'm being picky but isn't the headline of this article wrong? It says, "Korean Air bans Apple, Dell notebooks on board". When I first read that I thought that Apple was banned, but Dell's were allowed on. Shouldn't it read "Korean Air bans Apple and Dell notebooks on board"
  • Reply 12 of 57
    i am making asbestos plastic right now
  • Reply 13 of 57
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by deckard


    Hate to be picky, but what about Sony laptops? I mean, the whole reason the Apple and Dell laptops are exploding is because of the batteries right? And those batteries are made by Sony right?



    Sooooo... doesn't it make sense that Sony would use their own batteries in their own laptops? Or do they use someone else's batteries as they know their own product is crap?!?



    Sheesh, these airlines need to stop, think and then implement. Nothing like a knee jerk reaction to make everyone relaxed and happy!







    I hate korean air, f!@#ing stupid people. You think Sony would make batteries for company's like Apple and Dell and not use them for there own computers. If that is the case, Sony should be left out when it comes to electronics when company's want to outsource. I like to know if they have thought about this at all, and i want to know if sony was using any of the batteries that were recalled.
  • Reply 14 of 57
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Hiro


    This is the airline with the worst safety record for any airline considered "large". They can't manage to follow flight procedures consistently enough to make me dare to go onboard one of their airplanes anymore. Scariest and smelliest flight I have EVER been on was one of theirs, ungh!



    And the problems are not with battery draw, but during battery charging. You can use the battery to run the computers in safely if it's not plugged in. Or plug in the computer and leave the battery out.



    the reason why it is smelly, is because koreans eat kimchi! Which then gives them gas.
  • Reply 15 of 57
    kreshkresh Posts: 379member
    I'm all for it. It's a huge risk.



    If you were the person responsible for making safety policy and a plane went down due to a fire from one of these notebooks then how would you explain it to family members that you knew that there was a risk of a fire from these notebooks, but you decided to let them onboard anyway.



    It's a reasonable safety precaution.



    edit: As far as allowing Sony notebooks onboard, well Sony has not come out publicly and stated there was a fire hazard and recalled the batteries for their notebooks.
  • Reply 16 of 57
    kreshkresh Posts: 379member
    On a side note, how hard is it to put out these battery fires?



    Is it like a magnesium fire, that is almost impossible to put out and burns right through almost anything?
  • Reply 17 of 57
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by kresh


    I'm all for it. It's a huge risk.



    If you were the person responsible for making safety policy and a plane went down due to a fire from one of these notebooks then how would you explain it to family members that you knew that there was a risk of a fire from these notebooks, but you decided to let them onboard anyway.



    It's a reasonable safety precaution.



    edit: As far as allowing Sony notebooks onboard, well Sony has not come out publicly and stated there was a fire hazard and recalled the batteries for their notebooks.



    I think they should at least check to see if the battery was made by Sony or not, by checking the serial number.
  • Reply 18 of 57
    kreshkresh Posts: 379member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by preston2o3


    I think they should at least check to see if the battery was made by Sony or not, by checking the serial number.



    And if these databases are not completely accurate? I remember during the first few days when this issue came out people were contacting Apple because their number was not in the on-line database, but Apple was saying it was one of the batteries affected.



    And if Sony announces next week that they should have included x block of serial numbers as well. I'm not sure the issue is settled completely, and it's not unreasonable to err on the side of caution.



    edit: link - http://forums.macrumors.com/showthre...hlight=battery post 58 on
  • Reply 19 of 57
    I was of the understanding that there was only an over heating/explosion/fire issue if the laptop was plugged in and charging.

    So unless you are in Business class with your laptop plugged in and charging during the flight it is a total non-issue.

    Please correct me if I am wrong as I am about to fly with QANTAS and want to have my facts straight before I commence arguing with them!
  • Reply 20 of 57
    hmmmm i do love Korean Girls!
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