The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) may issue a fresh advisory on the use of Samsung Galaxy Note7 phones on board aircraft after getting inputs from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the US.
The fresh advisory is likely to be put in the public domain by next week, a senior DGCA official said two days after a Samsung Galaxy Note 7 caught fire on an aircraft in the US.
“The FAA guidelines prohibit carrying of Galaxy Note7 device in the cargo, besides switching off all applications (in case of flight mode) as well as protecting the switch on/off button. We are in touch with the FAA over the issue, and if it revisits these guidelines, we will also issue a fresh advisory on use of the device,” the official said.
The FAA guidelines, issued on September 16, “prohibit air cargo shipments of recalled or defective lithium batteries and lithium battery-powered devices, and passengers may not turn on or charge the devices when they carry them on board a plane. Passengers must also protect the devices from accidental activation, including disabling any features that may turn on the device, such as alarm clocks, and must not pack them in checked luggage”.
Earlier, the Indian aviation regulator had completely banned the use of Galaxy Note 7 onboard flights as also carrying them in check-in baggage, which it partially lifted on September 30.