Surprising exceptions to hazardous materials restrictions

While the TSA has a number of restrictions on hazardous and dangerous items, the FAA allows passengers to travel with several categories of hazardous items on commercial airliners. These exceptions are for small amounts of hazardous materials, typically included in items that are for personal use.

The FAA has provided a rather detailed table listing these exceptions, and they explain in that document that the TSA may on occasion prohibit these items, and that airlines may have additional limitations on these items. Some of the hazardous materials exceptions mentioned in the FAA document are listed below:

• Toilet or medicinal articles that are hazardous materials such as rubbing alcohol, flammable perfume and colognes, nail polish and remover, and aerosols (hairspray, shaving cream, etc.).
• One book of safety matches (book matches) allowed in carry-on bags only.
• One lighter (gas or absorbed liquid) in carry-on baggage only.
• Up to 5 liters of alcoholic beverages with an alcohol content of more than 24% but not more than 70% in unopened retail package, in carry-on or checked bags depending on the situation (Note: for tips on how to travel with liquor, which is typically a duty-free item, visit AirSafe.com for advice.
• A cordless curling iron with a flammable gas cartridge installed.
• Small personal mercury thermometer in a protective case.
• Small arms ammunition (up to 19.1 mm for rifle and pistol cartridges, any size bshotgun shells) for personal use, when securely boxed (checked baggage only). Also, check out this 2010 AirSafeNews.com article on how to travel with firearms.
• One small (4-ounce or less) self-defense spray (checked baggage only).
• Diving lamps and other battery-operated extreme heat producing equipment, with power disconnected and in carry-on bags only.
• Small lithium and lithium-ion batteries in consumer electronic devices. Spare batteries must be protected from damage and short circuit and placed in carryon baggage.

For questions or comments regarding these hazardous materials regulations, please contact the Hazardous Materials Information Center at: 800.467.4922 or infocntr@dot.gov

For questions about TSA prohibited items or other air travel security measures please visit tsa.airsafe.com, which has a detailed overview of what is allowed in either carry-on or checked baggage, what is completely prohibited, and what kinds of exceptions are allowed by the TSA.

For details on typical airport security procedures please visit security.airsafe.com. You can also visit the TSA web site at www.tsa.gov, or contact the TSA for questions about security procedures or prohibited items at 1.866.289.9673 or tsa-contactcenter@dhs.gov.

Rescheduled webinar on sex toys and the TSA in two days

On Thursday March 28, AirSafe.com will host a live webinar on how TSA rules affect passengers who fly with one or more sex toys.

While the TSA for the most part does an outstanding job of protecting the flying public, sometimes they compromise a passenger's privacy and dignity while doing so.

There have been a number of cases where TSA representatives exposed passengers to unnecessary embarrassment and humiliation because the passenger was traveling with a sex toy. In at least one case from 2011, a TSA screener was fired for leaving an inappropriate message in a checked bag containing a sex toy.

This webinar will discuss TSA rules with respect to what is allowed in checked and carry-on bags, with an emphasis on what sex toys and sex toy accessories are allowed in flight.

The webinar will also provide advice on what passengers can do to minimize or eliminate problems with TSA security screening, and suggest specific steps to take if the TSA fails to act in a professional manner. In addition, the webinar will discuss how rules and customs concerning sex toys may differ when traveling outside of the US.

Register for the webinar today!

Note: This webinar was orginally scheduled for February 28, 2013. If you registered for the original webinar, please re-register using the above link

---

Previous webinar
Last week's webinar discussed the upcoming changes to the TSA's rules on traveling with knives and other potential weapons items in carry-on baggage. If you missed last week's webinar, check out the following resources:
Video of previous TSA webinar
List of upcoming changes to TSA prohibited items list

Webinar: How to Fly with a Sex Toy under TSA Rules

On Thursday March 28, AirSafe.com will host a live webinar on how TSA rules affect passengers who fly with one or more sex toys. While the TSA for the most part does an outstanding job of protecting the flying public, sometimes they compromise a passenger's privacy and dignity while doing so.

There have been a number of cases where TSA representatives exposed passengers to unnecessary embarrassment and humiliation because the passenger was traveling with a sex toy. In at least one case from 2011, a TSA screener was fired for leaving an inappropriate message in a checked bag containing a sex toy.

This webinar will discuss TSA rules with respect to what is allowed in checked and carry-on bags, with an emphasis on what sex toys and sex toy accessories are allowed in flight.

The webinar will also provide advice on what passengers can do to minimize or eliminate problems with TSA security screening, and suggest specific steps to take if the TSA fails to act in a professional manner. In addition, the webinar will discuss how rules and customs concerning sex toys may differ when traveling outside of the US.

Register for the webinar today!

Note: This webinar was orginally scheduled for February 28, 2013. If you registered for the original webinar, please re-register using the previous link

Maggots Raining on Passengers Forces US Airways Flight Back to Gate

Some airline incidents are quite stranger than fiction, and that was the case on June 28, 2010 in Atlanta. US Airways flight 1537, which was scheduled to go from Atlanta, GA to Charlotte, NC, was taxiing prior to takeoff when passengers began noticing maggots falling from on overhead bin. The flight crew announced that they were returning to the gate because of a "minor emergency on board."

The source of the maggots was from a container of spoiled meat that was in the carry-on baggage of one of the passengers. The plane returned to the gate, where a ground crew cleaned out the aircraft before it was allowed to continue to Charlotte. The passenger who caused this situation was also allowed to continue, but on another flight. Only after the flight arrived at Charlotte did the airline fumigate the aircraft.

Comments from one of the passengers on this flight show just how disturbing this event was to them:

• I heard the word ‘maggot' and that kind of got everybody creeped out...All of a sudden, I felt somebody flick the back of my hair and on the front of me came a maggot, which I flicked off me
  
  
• I felt like they were crawling all over me because it only takes one maggot to upset your world
  
  
• And as they're telling us to stay calm and seated, I see a maggot looking back at me and I'm thinking, ‘These are anaerobic, flesh-eating larvae that the flight attendants don't have to sit with

How Can Maggots Get on an Airplane?
In the US, the federal government restricts what kinds of animals or other live creatures are allowed on an aircraft, and what kinds of animals can be imported into the US. However, for domestic airline flights it is up to the airline to set rules for animals, and those rules typically deal with flying with pets and service animals. Also, while the TSA has many rules about what items are permitted and prohibited from checked or carry-on baggage, there are no specific restrictions on bringing either spoiled meat or insects through security.

AirSafe.com contacted US Airways directly, and a representative indicated that dogs, cats, and birds were allowed on flights, but not bees or other insects. Presumably this means that maggots would not have been allowed on the aircraft if the airline had been made aware of their presence. It is not clear whether the passenger who brought the maggots on board either received permission from the airline or was even aware that there were maggots in their baggage.

Video Report of the Maggot Event

Advice from AirSafe.com
Most airlines have very detailed rules on what kinds of live animals or biological specimens you can bring on an aircraft. If you are thinking about bringing any kind of animal or insect on board the aircraft, contact the airline ahead of time to see if your animal will even be allowed. If you are traveling internationally, make sure you are following all appropriate import and export rules. If you see something that may be a problem, for example someone sneaking an animal onto the aircraft, or a carry-on or checked baggage item that may be a health hazard, contact an airline representative immediately.