Can You Bring Magยญnets On a Plane?After more than two years of panยญdemยญic-enforced idleยญness, the world has eagerยญly takยญen to air travยญel once again. Tourism around the world is up and risยญing each month. Desยญtiยญnaยญtions that rely on revยญenue genยญerยญatยญed by tourist dolยญlars are finalยญly recovering.Thatโs good for economies right around the globe, and air travยญellers are thrilled to finalยญly being able to get movยญing again.Because there are so many rules and regยญuยญlaยญtions surยญroundยญing air travยญel, itโs easy to overยญlook someยญthing that might seem minor but, in fact, could cause flight delays or even cancellations. Weโre talkยญing about magnets.Thatโs right, magยญnets. Some magยญnets are harmยญless, like the souยญvenir fridge magยญnet you might purยญchase while on holยญiยญday or those found in cerยญtain chilยญdrenโs toys. But stronger magยญnets can cause havยญoc on planes, dependยญing on how powยญerยญful they are. No one wants to be the perยญson causยญing delays at the secuยญriยญty check-in gate because of inadยญverยญtentยญly carยญryยญing a magยญnet thatโs not allowed.Thatโs why, in this artiยญcle, we explain the regยญuยญlaยญtions in place govยญernยญing which magยญnets are allowed on planes. Whether you realยญize it or not, bringยญing a magยญnet thatโs too strong onto your flight can damยญage everyยญthing from GPS navยญiยญgaยญtionยญal equipยญment to the data stored on anothยญer pasยญsenยญgerโs lapยญtop. No one wants to be responยญsiยญble for that, right? so which magยญnets are perยญfectยญly safe durยญing air travยญel and which ones should be left at home or transยญportยญed in anothยญer manner?Before we examยญine which types of magยญnets qualยญiยญfy as safe, letโs examยญine why this is so potenยญtialยญly dangerous.
What Risks Do Magnets Pose To Planes?
We live in a highยญly techยญniยญcal world โ lapยญtops, celยญluยญlar phones, comยญputยญerยญized navยญiยญgaยญtionยญal tools โ and magยญnets pose a seriยญous risk to all of them. For examยญple: if you take a small but powยญerยญful magยญnet in your lugยญgage, it has the capaยญbilยญiยญty of interยญferยญing with the direcยญtions set by the globยญal posiยญtionยญing sysยญtem (GPS) installed in the cockยญpit of your plane. That, of course, has the potenยญtial to throw the pilotโs readยญings off-kilยญter, though experts say itโs not likeยญly to cause a disaster.Even weakยญer magยญnets can be probยญlemยญatยญic โ not to the plane, necยญesยญsarยญiยญly, but to the othยญer folks flyยญing on it. If a magยญnet exceeds a cerยญtain threshยญold, it might interยญfere with the softยญware and/or hardยญware of othยญer pasยญsenยญgersโ comยญputยญers and phones. (Below are the calยญcuยญlaยญtions you need to know when decidยญing which magยญnets pose a risk on your impendยญing flight).
Types Of Magnets That Are Safe
1- Most Souvenir & Fridge Magnets Are Safe
How many of those delightยญful fridge magยญnets have you purยญchased while on holยญiยญday? The ones with, for examยญple, a picยญture of the Empire State Buildยญing and the famous sloยญgan, โI Love New York?โ Lots of them, right? Youโll be relieved to know that these popยญuยญlar souยญvenirs are safe to take on airยญplanes. Souยญvenir magยญnets have the two key qualยญiยญties of any magยญnet perยญmitยญted on planes: theyโre small, and theyโre not strong.
2- Magnetic Toys Are Safe
There are plenยญty of toys that have magยญnetยญic mateยญriยญals in them, such as buildยญing blocks that adhere when your child is buildยญing a magยญic towยญer, for examยญple. These are safe, and you needยญnโt be conยญcerned that they will interยญfere with either the planeโs operยญaยญtional equipยญment or the hardยญware and softยญware in laptops.
3- Other Items Often Carried On Planes That Contain Magnets
You may not realยญize it, but lots of items you may carยญry aboard a plane have magยญnets or magยญnetยญic mateยญrยญiยญal conยญtained withยญin them. For examยญple, smartยญphones, headยญphones, lapยญtops, jewยญellery, DVD playยญers and calยญcuยญlaยญtors all have magยญnets of some sort in them. Whatโs imporยญtant to note is that the strength levยญel of the magยญnets in these goods is low enough that no harm is done to the airยญcraftโs navยญiยญgaยญtionยญal equipment.All planes, whether itโs a small Cessยญna or a large comยญmerยญcial jet, have a comยญpass of one sort or anothยญer on board. How do you know if the magยญnetยญic mateยญrยญiยญal youโre carยญryยญing can interยญfere with it and othยญer equipยญment like sensors?
How Strong Is Too Strong?
A magยญnetโs strength is meaยญsured in milยญliยญgauss, which is the corยญrect physics term for meaยญsurยญing the magยญnetโs pull. Airยญlines use milยญliยญgauss meters to gauge the magยญnetโs strength when perยญsonยญnel decide whether an item is safe for shipยญping by air. Itโs always best to get the facts before you head to the airยญport, so if you are unsure about a magยญnetยญic objecยญtโs safeยญty, call or go online before headยญing out.If the magยญnetยญic field in a parยญticยญuยญlar item is stronger than 5.25 milยญliยญgauss at a disยญtance of 15 feet, it canยญnot be transยญportยญed by plane. But how are you to know just how strong is too strong and whether the magยญneยญtized chess game you bought as a birthยญday gift for your son can be carยญried in your luggage?Itโs always best to conยญsult the experts, which in this case is the Interยญnaยญtionยญal Air Transยญport Assoยญciยญaยญtion. This orgaยญniยญzaยญtion sets globยญal stanยญdards for safeยญty in all flight areas. You can reach it at IATA.Anothยญer govยญernยญment body that can help is the US Departยญment of Transยญportaยญtion. You can reach it at DOT. And the Transยญportaยญtion Secuยญriยญty Adminยญisยญtraยญtion (TSA) can also help with inforยญmaยญtion. You can reach this departยญment at TSA.If the magยญnetยญic mateยญriยญals in any merยญchanยญdise are simยญply too strong and thereยญfore unsafe to transยญport by air โ even in a woodยญen crate or steel-lined box โ it has to go by long haul transยญport, meanยญing by rail or by truck.
Do Magnets Set Off Airport Metal Detectors?
Accordยญing to transยญportaยญtion offiยญcials, most magยญnets arenโt strong enough to set off a metยญal detecยญtor when youโre going through secuยญriยญty. For examยญple: letโs say the neckยญlace youโre wearยญing has a magยญnetยญic cloยญsure. Because itโs just powยญerยญful enough to keep the neckยญlace secureยญly fasยญtened by not strong enough to exceed the meter readยญing, it wonโt be flagged by secuยญriยญty agents. Still, itโs wise to undo it and place it in the tray so agents can examยญine it, then return it once youโve been scanned.
Magnetized Products You May Not Have Considered
Hereโs someยญthing we bet you may not have thought of priยญor to bookยญing your flight: will the magยญnetยญic eyeยญlashยญes you wear to be allowed? Do you wear them every day, putting them on as part of your mornยญing rouยญtine while getยญting ready to go to work? Have you become accusยญtomed to wearยญing them because they are just so pretยญty and convenient?If so, you should know that they conยญtain magยญnetยญic mateยญrยญiยญal that helps them adhere to your own lashยญes. But fear not! There probยญaยญbly isnโt enough strength in them to set off the metยญal detecยญtor when you go through secuยญriยญty at your flightโs gate. Itโs unlikeยญly, but it is posยญsiยญble, accordยญing to the TSA; there is a slight chance this could hapยญpen. Thereยญfore, itโs best to carยญry them with you in a case, so you can put them on the tray while going through security.Examยญples like this are why itโs so imporยญtant that you check with offiยญcials, either by callยญing or by going on their webยญsites and readยญing the regยญuยญlaยญtions online. Knowยญing just which magยญnets are perยญmisยญsiยญble and which ones might not ensure your next flight goes smoothly.
Should Magnets Go In Your Carry On Bags or Checked Luggage?
This is up to you, realยญly, accordยญing to the TSA. As long as the item is allowed on the plane, how you carยญry it is your choice. That chess set we menยญtioned โ the one with pieces that stick to the board with magยญneยญtized mateยญrยญiยญal โ can be easยญiยญly tucked into your checked lugยญgage, safeยญly stored between layยญers of clothes.
In Conclusion
Whether youโre carยญryยญing a rare earth magยญnet (often used in hard disk driยญves and headยญphones) or a regยญuยญlar one (regยญuยญlar magยญnets are made of iron), you need to be sure itโs allowed on the plane. Minor things that we, as conยญsumers, may not think of in advance can potenยญtialยญly cause real headaches for borยญder secuยญriยญty personnel.Thatโs why it is so cruยญcial that you do a litยญtle research in advance to make cerยญtain that whatยญevยญer magยญneยญtized items youโre takยญing on the flight โ souยญvenir desยญtiยญnaยญtion magยญnets, fridge magยญnets, etc. โ arenโt a probยญlem. Itโs all about the strength of the magยญnet, not the size.Once youโve checked the guideยญlines on a govยญernยญment webยญsite, you will be all set to fly hassle-free.The final deciยญsion of what magยญnets are and are not allowed on planes rests with airยญport perยญsonยญnel. If you want to send someยญthing overยญseas in a crate or box โ toys for Christยญmas presents for a famยญiยญly memยญber far away, perยญhaps? โ staff in the carยญgo shipยญping departยญment at the airยญport can give you all the inforยญmaยญtion you require for sendยญing it safeยญly. But if youโre simยญply carยญryยญing some souยญvenir magยญnets home from a fabยญuยญlous holยญiยญday to hand out as gifts, youโll have no trouยญble takยญing them through secuยญriยญty. Just rememยญber to read the regulations!Knowยญing how to take magยญnet-conยญtainยญing prodยญucts safeยญly on planes (like your smartยญphone and lapยญtop) means you can relax and enjoy your flight!
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