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Recent fires involving lithium-ion batteries shipped via cargo aircraft highlight risks posed by such shipments and prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to dish out fines to three companies.
The agency disclosed the fines on 5 September, saying the companies violated hazardous material regulations. Two of the firms shipped packages that were carried by US express shipment airlines and that caught fire.
“The package was emitting smoke and smelled of burning. Inspection of the contents revealed a fire had occurred, and three of the batteries had melted together,” the FAA says of an 8 August 2024 incident involving a shipment of 25 lithium-ion batteries for mobile phones.
A Virginia company called Mobilesentrix had shipped the batteries via FedEx but failed to package them properly or to declare the shipment as hazardous, according to the agency. The FAA does not say when the fire occurred during the journey.
Mobilesentrix, which describes itself as a wholesale supplier of cell phone parts, also improperly shipped lithium-ion batteries via FedEx twice in September last year and once in November, the FAA adds. “None of the shipments were properly classed, described, packaged, marked, labelled or in the proper condition for shipment.”
The regulator proposes fining Mobilesentrix $170,000 and says the company has asked to discuss the case with the FAA.
Similarly, lithium-ion batteries shipped by South Korean firm LG Energy Solution to Los Angeles on 4 January 2024 caught fire, the FAA says. “FedEx personnel discovered the shipment when it emitted heat, smoke, ember and flames in its sorting facility in Irvine, California. One or more of the lithium-ion batteries were charred and melted.”
The agency proposes a $60,000 fine against LG Energy for not declaring the shipment as hazardous and for improper packaging and labelling.
The FAA also proposes fining Mokwheel E-Bikes $74,250 for allegedly violating hazardous materials requirements when shipping lithium-ion batteries to Shenzhen, China via UPS in December 2023. That company is based in California, according to its website.
Mokwheel did not properly declare the shipment and failed to ensure its workers had completed hazardous materials training, the FAA says. “UPS personnel discovered the shipment at the company’s sorting facility in Anchorage.”
This article first appeared on Air Cargo News sister title Flight Global.
