Panel proposes ban on air shipments of batteries

A UN panel recommended Wednesday that cargo shipments of rechargeable lithium batteries be banned from passenger airliners because the batteries can create fires capable of destroying planes, said aviation officials familiar with the decision. The ICAO's air navigation commission, the agency's highest technical body, also proposed that the ban be lifted if new packaging can be developed that provides an acceptable level of safety. Final approval from the ICAO top-level council is still needed. The council is scheduled to take up the matter in late February. FAA tests show a single damaged or defective battery can experience uncontrolled temperature increases that can spread throughout a shipment. It's not unusual for tens of thousands batteries to shipped in a single cargo container. <br/>