On Tuesday we told you that the FAA was considering a ban on Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7, the smartphone that keeps exploding and causing fires. Well, the FAA just released a statement advising passengers not to turn on those phones while they’re on board any flights. The FAA also advises against putting them inside your checked baggage.
From the FAA:
In light of recent incidents and concerns raised by Samsung about its Galaxy Note 7 devices, the Federal Aviation Administration strongly advises passengers not to turn on or charge these devices on board aircraft and not to stow them in any checked baggage.
I asked an FAA spokesperson whether this was the final word on whether the Samsung phones would be banned from flights in the future. Samsung’s lack of an official and proper recall has meant that federal agencies have been left scrambling and doing their best to respond with virtually no assistance from Samsung.
“We’ll update the statement as more information becomes available,” the FAA spokesperson told me over email.