Image credit: Wikimedia user TheNorlo

You may have heard the controversy over electronic cigarettes and whether they’re considered safe for your health or not. Well, the jury is still out, but when it comes to air travel, there are some definitive rules for flying with e-cigarettes.

The Federal Aviation Administration recently declared that e-cigarettes are banned from checked luggage. That means they have to go inside your carry-on bag.

Why? Because the devices use lithium batteries and there’s concern over e-cigarettes overheating or even catching fire inside the cargo hold.

That’s based on real-life situations. There have been two recent incidents of e-cigarettes inside checked bags that spontaneously caught fire.

Now, being able to bring e-cigarettes on board may sound like good news to those of you who can’t wait for your nicotine fix.

But not so fast. Currently, each airline makes its own rules about whether passengers can actually use electronic cigarettes in flight, and overwhelmingly, they’re not allowed.

Sorry, folks, you’ll just have to wait with the rest of the smokers until you get off the plane.

For more information, visit the Airlines & Airports archives. 

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