The United States Department of Transportation (DOT) banned passengers from packing electronic cigarettes in their checked luggage to prevent fires, according to ABC News.
The new DOT rule also prohibits passengers from putting any battery-operated electronic smoking devices into their checked luggage, reported NBC News.
Passengers can still carry electronic cigarettes in their carry-on bags, noted News Max, but they cannot recharge the devices while in flight.
Since 2009, e-cigarettes have caused explosions and fires in 26 reported incidents in which the electronic cigarettes were packed in luggage, reported News Max.
Earlier this year, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a warning to airlines stating that e-cigarettes may be a fire hazard when placed in checked baggage, according to the Los Angeles Times. The FAA suggested that passengers carry their electronic smoking devices in their carry-on bags. The International Civil Aviation Organization of the United Nations issued a similar flight recommendation in December 2014.
At Los Angeles International Airport in January, one checked bag caught fire due to overheated e-cigarettes inside, noted NBC News. The bag arrived late and missed its connecting flight prior to catching fire.
"These incidents and several others occurring outside of air transportation have shown that e-cigarettes can overheat and cause fires when the heating element is accidentally activated or left on," the FAA stated in its warning.
According to ABC News, the new federal flight regulation goes into effect in two weeks.
