How to Check If Your Laptop Is Part of the FAA's Ban on Select MacBook Pros

Aug. 14, 2019

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2 min read

How to Check If Your Laptop Is Part of the FAA's Ban on Select MacBook Pros

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The US Federal Aviation Administration has banned select MacBook Pro laptops from being carried on, or checked into the cargo holds of, aircraft. The FAA's decision follows Apple's announcement that some of the older MacBook Pro units posed a fire risk.

According to the FAA's statement, the agency has alerted major US airlines to the recall, explaining that the affected laptops should not be allowed to fly as cargo or in passengers' carry-on baggage.

The devices in question are some 15-inch MacBook Pros that were sold between September 2015 and February 2017.

Apple originally announced the recall in June, saying it had "determined that, in a limited number of older generation 15-inch MacBook Pro units, the battery may overheat and pose a fire safety risk."

Affected units can be determined by the product's serial number, and checked online. To check if your 15-inch MacBook Pro is part of the recall and has been banned by the FAA, follow these steps:

1. Click the Apple icon in the top left corner of your screen and select 'About This Mac'.

2. Confirm your model is "MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Mid 2015)".

3. If so, go to Apple's dedicated recall page and enter your device's serial number to see if it's eligible. If it is, you'll be offered several options, such as getting the battery replaced.

According to a notice distributed in Canada in June, about 432,000 MacBook Pros sold in the US were part of the recall, and about 26,000 of the affected units were sold in Canada. The number of the devices part of the recall that were sold in Europe has not been disclosed.

This week, four non-US-based airlines introduced bans of their own for the devices — TUI Group, Thomas Cook, Air Italy and Air Transat, according to Bloomberg News.

TUI ground staff and cabin crew will begin making annoucements about the ban at the gate and before takeoff. Laptops that have already had their batteries replaced will be allowed on board the TUI flights, the airline said.