US bans Samsung Note 7 on planes

AIRLINE passengers who try to carry Samsung Note 7 smartphones on flights will have them confiscated and may face fines under an emergency US order that expands restrictions on the devices linked to almost 100 incidents of overheating and fires.

The devices won’t be allowed aboard passenger or cargo aircraft even if they’ve been shut off, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration and the Federal Aviation Administration announced on Friday.

“We recognise that banning these phones from airlines will inconvenience passengers, but the safety of all those aboard an aircraft must take priority,” US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said.

Samsung on Tuesday said it was halting production and sales of the device after the latest smoke, overheating and fire incidents in what was supposed to be a version that replaced a faulty lithium-ion battery with a safe one.

The initial wave of Note 7 failures were linked to battery cells being squeezed into a container pouch so tightly they became pinched, damaging the interior. That led to short circuits. — Bloomberg