Airlines Banning Samsung Galaxy 7 From Flights, Stowed Baggage
Several airlines and governments around the world are banning or issuing advisories for the Galaxy Note 7, prohibiting use of the device during flights or even forbidding passengers from bringing them on board or stowing them with baggage in some cases, in response to reports of the “phablets” exploding due to faulty batteries.
On Saturday civil aviation authorities in the United Arab Emirates made an announcement banning the use of the Galaxy 7 on all flights made by its national airlines, according to Phys.org, a science and technology news site.
“The General Civil Aviation Authority has banned operating, charging and carrying in bags the Samsung Note 7 on board national carriers’ flights,” read a statement announced by the official WAM news agency on Saturday.
Dubai’s Emirates Airline, the largest Middle East carrier, announced that it would “immediately” comply with General Civil Aviation Authority, Phys.org reported.
“This measure is to avoid the possibility of these devices’ batteries causing fires,” Emirates Airlines announced.
A second carrier based out of the United Arab Emirates, Etihad Airways, had already temporarily banned the use of the Galaxy Note 7 smartphones on board its flights. Two other UAE airlines, flydubai and Air Arabia, are expected enforce the ban as well.
In addition to the UAE banning Galaxy Note 7s on flights, Singapore Airlines, Qantas, and Virgin Australia have all also announced similar bans, Phys.org reports.
Airline just gave a verbal warning to passengers who own galaxy note 7: “due to recall, must be powered off and stowed. No charging.”
— ?_? (@MikeIsaac) September 11, 2016
US and Japanese aviation authorities have also urged passengers not to turn on or charge the devices on aircraft. The US Federal Aviation Administration went as far as to instruct passengers not to stow the device in checked baggage.
The Inquisitr reported on faulty batteries in the Galaxy Note 7 causing the device to explode or catch fire on September 3, just two weeks after Samsung launched the much-anticipated device.
Samsung issued an immediate recall of the estimated 2.5 million Galaxy 7s that had already been sold by retailers in 10 different countries, including the United States.
The president of Samsung’s mobile division, Koh Dong-jin, announced at the time that customers who had already purchased Galaxy Note 7s would be allowed to exchange them for new smartphones in approximately two weeks, CBS News reported. He also apologized to customers on behalf of Samsung.
Of the 2.5 million Galaxy 7s sold prior to the recall, there were reports of approximately 35 catching fire or exploding.
Please exchange your Note 7 immediately. https://t.co/R22p3hSCVI
— Florence Ion (@Ohthatflo) September 12, 2016
At least one injury has been reported in connection with the Galaxy 7 battery issue. Android Central reports that a 6-year-old boy in New York was injured when a Galaxy 7 exploded while he was watching a video on it. On September 9 Fox News reported that a Jeep in Florida caught fire and burned beyond repair after the owner left a Galaxy 7 charging in it.
The batter issue, recall, and airline bans comes at a particularly troubling time for Samsung. The company hoped the Galaxy Note 7 would become the flagship device for its mobile division of the company.
The Galaxy 7 received overwhelmingly positive reviews before reports of the fires and explosions. The phone also met with greater demand than anticipated. Samsung executives had hoped this momentum would carry the Galaxy 7 through the expected announcement of a new iPhone from Apple next week, according to the CBS News report.
Apple has been facing its own problems with widespread issues of “touch disease,” as The Inquisitr previously reported, and severe backlash from the announcement the company abandoned headphone jacks in the new iPhone 7 in favor of “air pods” that cost $150.
Samsung has yet to discover the cause of the battery fires and explosions, but is working to address the problem, as The Inquisitr has previously reported. Airlines banning use of the phone will undoubtedly be yet another reason for Samsung to find a solution to the Galaxy 7 battery problem as quickly as possible.
[Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images]
