Airlines around the world have moved swiftly to ban the carriage of the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 following a declaration from the manufacturer’s global recall of the device due to safety concerns.
In this part of the world, Qantas, Virgin Australia, Tigerair Australia, Jetstar and Air New Zealand have issued travel alerts informing passengers the Galaxy Note 7 cannot be taken on board their aircraft in checkin luggage, carry on or on their person.
Qantas said in a statement on its website: “This is due to concerns regarding potential fire risk from the device’s battery after a number of incidents worldwide and follows a ban put in place by regulators overseas,” Qantas said in a statement on its website.
“The ban applies to devices being carried onto the aircraft, in carry-on baggage as well as check-in luggage. Other Samsung devices are not affected.”
Virgin “strongly advised” its passengers not to bring these devices to the airport when travelling.
“We apologise for any inconvenience to our guests, but safety is always our number one priority,” Virgin said, echoing statements from the other carriers around the world.
The move to ban carriage of the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 followed an emergency order from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of Transportation (DOT) and Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) prohibiting the device from being carried on flights in the United States.
Prior to the blanket ban on carrying the Note 7, airlines had issued specific safety messages on board requiring the device to be powered off throughout the flight.
Samsung has ceased production of the Galaxy Note 7 and issued a worldwide recall of up to 2.5 million devices following a number of incidents where they burst into flames. Watchers of the mobile phone industry say there have been at least 96 reports of the phone overheating.
“The safety of our customers is our first priority, which is why we are taking this further step and extending the current recall to all Galaxy Note 7 devices, including replacement Galaxy Note 7 devices,” Samsung Electronics Australia vice president IT and mobile Richard Fink said in a statement.
“We know our Galaxy Note customers are among our most loyal customers and we sincerely apologise to them.”
