Do you want to travel on a plane with your electric bike? Whether can you take an electric bike on a plane depends on a few factors, like the wattage hour of the e-bike battery.
However, you can take the bike without restriction, while the main problem is the battery. If you have a battery that has more wattage hours, you cannot take it with you. If you still want to travel with your e-bike, no worries. I will share all the working solutions in this article, so keep reading.
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Can you take an E-Bike on a Plane?
Unfortunately, the answer is no, you can’t carry an electric bike on a plane. The main problem is the electric bike lithium-ion battery that powers your electric bike. This battery is restricted to transport in the plane for safety reasons.
Lithium-ion Battery Restrictions in US
As everyone knows, in any random airplane, there are only luggage bag options for passengers that they can keep in the baggage area. Therefore, there is no such option in US air travel or any other traveling craft you can use to transport your favorite electric bike to any other place you want.
However, the Federal Aviation Administration of United States Travels only allows travelers to bring lithium-ion batteries a maximum of up to 100 watts. So if you want to transport e-bikes on planes, their battery must be less than the FAA lithium ion battery limit.
You can have an exception if that battery is connected to some medical tool. This is the limit if you want to travel with an electric bike. You should also be aware about weight of an electric bike.
Calculating Watt-Hours
You can calculate the battery life or capacity by measuring the battery’s watts, volts, or ampere. As you know, the transportation of your E-bike depends upon the battery amp or its voltage.
The FAA clarifies the watt-hour of battery that you can transport in the plane. More than 100wh battery cannot be taken into the plane. Therefore, to make the decision, you should know the watt hours of a battery to transfer the electric bike from one country to another.
Now the question is: Can you take your electric bike on a plane? For this, calculate the watt hours by multiplying the battery’s voltage by amp hours. For example, the voltage of an E-bike you want to transfer is 49 volts. At the same time, its battery amp hours are 10 amp. You will multiply both to get the watts hours of the bike battery (49 x 10) = 490 watts hours.
You may also want to know are electric bikes allowed on trains
Alternatives To Flying With An Electric Bike
If your battery fails to fulfill these standards, no worries. Here are some practical and tested solutions to transfer your electric bike or battery.
1. Split The Battery Into Smaller Batteries
With keeping an eye on the limit of 100wh, the LIGO company designed a battery under 100wh that can be taken in the plane. These batteries can be set in a parallel line in the bike to maintain high performance. After reaching the destination, these under 100 batteries can also assemble into a large battery to provide the necessary power to your e-bike.
2. Rent A Battery
A bike with a high watt hour battery cannot be taken on the flight, you can take your bike without a battery. After getting to the destination, you can take a battery on rent for your bike and enjoy the ride on it. You can go with this option, but this choice can be costly for you because the rents of batteries are pretty high in other countries. However, this is the most convenient solution if you can afford the cost.
3. Ship Your Battery Separately
Lithium batteries can be menacing in a plane, but what if you transport your bike battery separately through the ship? No doubt, shipping electric bike to Hawaii or any other location is expensive and time-consuming. Also, you need to label and be careful with the packing of your battery. You cannot place it in the passenger area because it can be risky too.
4. Use Another Form Of Transport
If you cannot take your bike through the plane, why don’t you go for another mode of transport like fairies? There is no restriction to taking an e-bike or batteries in the fairies. You can choose the fairy from the UK to France or Europe and book your bike on it to the final destination. You may also want to know how to carry electric bike spare battery.
Final Thoughts about Shipping Electric Bikes
Riding an electric bike wherever you are can be joyful and entertaining. However, the answer of can you take an electric bike on a plane is no. still, make sure to let these limitations block your pleasant experience. I have shared all solutions you can use to make traveling with an e-bike possible. If you are ready to go through the plane, try these solutions.
Hi, I’m Robert A. Cannon, Electrical Engineer by profession and travel enthusiast! I has been passionate about building electric circuits and remodeling since my childhood. Following my passion, I graduated as an Electrical Engineer from University of Houston and turned my passion into a profession. I have worked in different electric vehicle manufacturing companies.
Following my professional expertise and experience in using different electric vehicles, I started EGearLab to assist the community in finding the right e-gear for transportation according to their needs. Feel free to contact me at anytime for queries related to electric outdoor vehicles!