Lufthansa Power Bank Rules 2026: Two Banks, No Use Since January

Can you bring a power bank on Lufthansa? Two, and it stays in the pocket for the whole flight

Lufthansa Group banned power bank use on board on 15 January 2026, two months before ICAO’s global rule, and applied it to all six of its airlines at once. The count is two, the capacity tiers are the standard ones for now, and the stowage rule is strict: nothing in the overhead locker. On an A350 with USB-C at every seat, the bank has no job in the air.

How this page was built. VoyageHacks read Lufthansa’s “Electronic devices and batteries” page with its power bank section expanded, and the Lufthansa Group announcement of 12 January 2026, on 16 September 2026, and quotes both directly below alongside EASA’s Safety Information Bulletin 2025-03 and IATA’s 31 March 2026 operator guidance. All 38 carriers are compared in power bank rules by airline.

Lufthansa’s power bank rules in one table

What Lufthansa says, word for word

From the baggage page and the group announcement, read on 16 September 2026:

• “Starting 15 January 2026, power banks may neither be used nor charged on board Lufthansa Group airlines flights. Each passenger may carry a maximum of two power banks in their carry-on baggage. The devices may only be stored in the seat pocket, on the passenger’s person, or in their carry-on luggage under the seat.”
• “Charging and using power banks is prohibited. An exception is made for use with approved medical devices.”
• “Power banks must not be stowed in the overhead locker above the seats. For safety reasons, please store your power banks under the seat in front of you or in its seat pocket, on your person or in your hand luggage.”
• “For power banks with a battery power greater than 100 Wh up to the maximum 160 Wh, transport approval from the airline is required. Please register power banks requiring approval when booking flights via the Lufthansa Help Center.”
• “For safety reasons, transporting power banks and e-cigarettes in checked baggage or storing them in the overhead compartments is not permitted.”
• “It is not permitted to carry with you defective or damaged personal electronic devices or batteries, or any such items recalled by the manufacturer for safety reasons.”
• “The regulation is aligned with the current recommendations of the international aviation authorities EASA, FAA, IATA and ICAO.”

Which tier is your power bank in? Lufthansa’s own formula

Lufthansa prints the conversion on its page: “watt hours (Wh) = milliampere hours (mAh) x voltage (V) / 1,000”. At a power bank’s nominal 3.7 volts:

The registration is done at booking through the Help Center, not at the gate. If you turn up with an unregistered 30,000mAh bank, Lufthansa’s page says what happens: confiscation, with no liability.

Why Lufthansa banned use on board

Lufthansa Group’s announcement says the rule “is aligned with the current recommendations of the international aviation authorities EASA, FAA, IATA and ICAO”. EASA’s Safety Information Bulletin 2025-03 asked airlines to keep power banks where they can be monitored and described recharging them or powering devices from them as “strongly discouraged”. Lufthansa turned the discouragement into a prohibition on 15 January 2026, and ICAO’s addendum of 27 March 2026 then made “not recharged on board” a requirement for every airline.

The one exception, approved medical devices, exists because a CPAP machine or a portable oxygen concentrator on a long flight may depend on an external battery.

Where the bank goes, and how to pack it, on Lufthansa

Lufthansa gives four allowed places: under the seat in front of you, in the seat pocket, on your person, or in your hand luggage. Combined with the overhead-locker ban, “hand luggage” means the bag that stays under the seat, not the roller bag that goes up.

Lufthansa also asks for short-circuit protection whenever the bank is not in use: original packaging, tape over exposed terminals, or a separate plastic bag or pouch for each bank. A bank with a built-in cable and no exposed contacts, like the two Anker units with built-in cables in the grid above, needs nothing more than the pouch.

Recalled power banks are not permitted on Lufthansa

Lufthansa’s wording covers “any such items recalled by the manufacturer for safety reasons”. Check the model number on the case against these CPSC recalls:

The A1689 is the Anker Zolo 20,000mAh 30W USB-C model, banned by name on Air Canada’s page. The three banks in the grid above are A1259, A1383 and A1340, none of which is recalled as of 16 September 2026.

How Lufthansa compares with SWISS, Air France, KLM and United

On a United and Lufthansa itinerary through Frankfurt, Lufthansa’s rules are the ones to pack for: no use at all, and the bank out of the locker.

What changes on 1 January 2027

The Help Center registration route disappears. IATA’s operator guidance of 31 March 2026 states that the provision allowing 100 to 160Wh power banks with airline approval “will not be carried into the 68th edition” of the Dangerous Goods Regulations, in force from 1 January 2027. From that date the ceiling for a power bank on Lufthansa is a flat 100Wh, about 27,000mAh.

Before you fly Lufthansa: the 60-second check

1. Two banks. Within the 20-battery total.
2. Read the Wh. Under 100Wh, nothing to do. 100 to 160Wh, register at booking via the Help Center.
3. Check the model against the recall table above.
4. Pouch or tape the terminals when the bank is not in use.
5. Seat pocket, under the seat or on you. Never the overhead locker, never checked baggage.
6. Charge from the seat. The bank is not used or charged on board, on any Lufthansa Group airline.

Lufthansa’s fares, bag allowance and cabins are covered in our Lufthansa review. For a bank that passes every carrier’s rule, see best travel power banks, and for all 38 airlines side by side, power bank rules by airline.

Frequently asked questions

How many power banks can I bring on Lufthansa?

Two. Lufthansa’s electronic devices page states an item restriction of a maximum of two power banks per passenger, and the Lufthansa Group announcement of 12 January 2026 repeats it: each passenger may carry a maximum of two power banks in their carry-on baggage. They count within the overall limit of 20 batteries of all types. The rule applies across Lufthansa, SWISS, Austrian, Brussels Airlines, Discover and Edelweiss.

Can I use a power bank on a Lufthansa flight?

No. Since 15 January 2026, charging and using power banks is prohibited on Lufthansa Group flights, with an exception only for approved medical devices. That covers charging a phone from the bank and charging the bank from the seat’s power sources. Lufthansa’s long-haul seats have USB and AC power, so charge your devices from the seat and leave the bank in the seat pocket.

Does Lufthansa allow power banks over 100Wh?

Yes, up to 160Wh, with approval. Lufthansa’s page states that for power banks with a battery power greater than 100Wh up to a maximum of 160Wh, transport approval from the airline is required, and asks you to register such power banks when booking via the Lufthansa Help Center. Above 160Wh nothing is accepted. From 1 January 2027 the 100 to 160Wh tier disappears under IATA’s rules, so a 30,000mAh bank approved this year will not fly next year.

Where must a power bank be stored on Lufthansa?

Not in the overhead locker. Lufthansa’s page says power banks must not be stowed in the overhead locker above the seats and asks you to store them under the seat in front of you or in its seat pocket, on your person or in your hand luggage. Lufthansa also asks you to protect the bank against short circuit when not in use, in its retail packaging, with tape over the terminals, or in a separate bag or pouch.

Can a power bank go in checked baggage on Lufthansa?

No. Lufthansa’s page marks power banks as not permitted in or as checked baggage, and the group announcement says transporting power banks and e-cigarettes in checked baggage or storing them in the overhead compartments is not permitted. Lufthansa warns that items not complying with the rules risk being confiscated at the airport, with no liability assumed for confiscated items.

How does Lufthansa calculate watt-hours?

Lufthansa’s page gives both versions: watt-hours = amp-hours x voltage, or watt-hours = milliamp-hours x voltage / 1,000. At a power bank’s nominal 3.7 volts, a 10,000mAh bank is about 37Wh, 20,000mAh about 74Wh, 27,000mAh about 100Wh, and 30,000mAh about 111Wh, which needs Lufthansa’s approval until the end of 2026.

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