The US Department of Transportation and a number of global airlines have banned passengers from taking the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 on flights.
The US DoT issued an emergency order to ban the device from being brought on board any flights. The order took effect as of Saturday, October 15th.
It is now considered a forbidden hazardous material under the Federal Hazardous Material Regulations.
Passengers who attempt to travel by air with a Samsung Note 7 device will be denied boarding. The department also warned that those who tried to evade the ban by stowing their phone away in checked luggage increased the risk of a “catastrophic” incident, and may be subject to criminal prosecution and fines.
An aeroplane in Kentucky, US, recently had to be evacuted after a Galaxy Note 7 caught fire before take-off.
Lives at risk
“We recognise that banning these phones from airlines will inconvenience some passengers, but the safety of all those aboard an aircraft must take priority,” said Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx.
“We are taking this additional step because even one fire incident inflight poses a high risk of severe personal injury and puts many lives at risk.”
The US Federal Aviation Administration had previously “strongly” advised passengers not to turn on or charge their Note 7, nor store them in any checked baggage.
A number of commercial airlines across the globe, including Air Berlin, Virgin Australia, Dragonair, Singapore Airlines and more, have also issued bans for the phone on flights.
End of the line
The news comes after Samsung permanently ceased production of the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 following a string of problems with the phone.
Shortly following its launch, reports emerged that the phone was exploding. This eventually led to a recall of the device after the battery was identified as the cause of the problem.
Samsung then issued replacement Galaxy Note 7s, but these were also found to have a defect causing the phone to explode.
This has resulted in Samsung completely doing away with the phone, a decision that could cost the firm more than $3 billion over the next six months.
