Can you take your inflatable lifejacket with you on board an aircraft?

Yes, in principle you may take an inflatable lifejacket with CO₂ cartridges on board an aircraft. International dangerous goods regulations allow this, but the airline must approve it in advance.

In short: passengers may carry up to two self-inflating personal safety devices, such as swimming aids or lifejackets. Each device may be fitted with no more than two CO₂ cartridges. In addition, up to two spare cartridges may be carried per device.

The lifejacket may generally be carried in either:

checked baggage
carry-on baggage

However, approval from the airline is required. The lifejacket must also be packed in such a way that it cannot be accidentally activated.

Legal provisions for carrying CO₂ cartridges and lifejackets on passenger aircraft

The legally relevant basis for carrying CO₂ cartridges in inflatable lifejackets is the Technical Instructions for the Safe Transport of Dangerous Goods by Air issued by the International Civil Aviation Organization, ICAO for short. These are commonly referred to as the ICAO Technical Instructions or ICAO T.I. In Europe, these requirements are incorporated into the operational rules for air transport.

The IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations, or IATA DGR, are not legislation as such. They are a set of rules issued by the International Air Transport Association. Many airlines use them as their practical working basis for applying the ICAO requirements in day-to-day air transport. For passengers, IATA Table 2.3.A is particularly useful because it summarises the dangerous goods that passengers and crew members may carry in their baggage.

For lifejackets, the following principles apply:

They are permitted in checked baggage.
They are permitted in carry-on baggage.
Approval from the airline is required.
Each passenger may carry no more than two self-inflating personal safety devices.
Each device may be fitted with no more than two cartridges.
Up to two spare cartridges may be carried per device.
The equipment must be packed in such a way that it cannot be accidentally activated.

It is important to distinguish lifejackets from other small gas cartridge devices. The 50 ml or 28 g limit often mentioned in this context does not generally apply to CO₂ cartridges in lifejackets. That limit relates to other devices, not to self-inflating personal safety equipment such as swimming aids or lifejackets.

Nevertheless, airlines may set their own procedures, conditions or stricter practical requirements. For this reason, you should always clarify the carriage of your inflatable lifejacket with the airline before travelling.

Important practical note

The fact that international regulations allow the carriage of inflatable lifejackets does not mean that airport procedures will always be straightforward. In practice, airline staff, security personnel or individual employees may not always be familiar with the specific rule for lifejackets. They may also confuse lifejacket CO₂ cartridges with other types of CO₂ cartridges.

A common mistake is to apply the 50 ml or 28 g limit to lifejacket cartridges. This limit comes from the rules for other small gas cartridges or other devices. It cannot simply be transferred to lifejackets. Depending on the design, a 50 ml water capacity in a CO₂ cartridge used for a lifejacket may correspond to a higher CO₂ filling weight.

For this reason, it is not technically correct to apply a general 28 g limit to lifejacket cartridges. However, this has happened repeatedly in the past. As a result, larger CO₂ cartridges for lifejackets have sometimes been refused or removed from baggage, even though the special rule for self-inflating personal safety equipment is intended to cover exactly this type of equipment.

Written approval from the airline is therefore very helpful, but it does not always prevent questions at the security checkpoint. We recommend carrying written approval from the airline and, where possible, a copy of the relevant IATA table.

Responsibility of the airline, security authorities and aircraft commander

Approval from the airline is required for carrying lifejackets with CO₂ cartridges. The airline may set its own procedures and may refuse or restrict carriage in individual cases.

In addition, airport security authorities may object to or remove items if they consider them to be prohibited or interpret the rules differently. This is particularly relevant if there is no written approval from the airline or if the CO₂ cartridges cannot clearly be identified as belonging to a lifejacket.

During actual flight operations, the aircraft commander, commonly referred to as the captain, also has a significant decision-making role. The captain is responsible for the safe conduct of the flight. Passengers must follow the captain’s lawful instructions.

This can work both ways. If the captain recognises that a restrictive 28 g interpretation does not apply to the special rule for lifejackets, and that carriage is permitted under the ICAO Technical Instructions, the captain may allow carriage in an individual case, provided that no mandatory rule prevents it. Conversely, the captain may refuse carriage even if it is generally permitted or has been approved in advance by the airline, if he or she does not consider it acceptable in the specific operational situation.

Written approval from the airline is therefore very important, but it is not an absolute guarantee. It is the best basis for resolving questions at the airport. The final practical decision may still rest with airport security or the aircraft commander.

What risk does an inflatable lifejacket pose?

In our technical opinion, a properly packed inflatable lifejacket with a CO₂ cartridge does not pose a relevant risk to the aircraft, crew or passengers.

CO₂ is a non-flammable gas. The CO₂ cartridges used in lifejackets are small pressure vessels designed for this specific purpose. If packed correctly, accidental activation is very unlikely.

Even if an inflatable lifejacket were accidentally activated in baggage, we would expect the main consequence to be damage or deformation to the baggage item itself. CO₂ does not create a fire or explosion risk comparable to flammable gases.

By comparison, the IATA table also allows avalanche rescue backpacks under certain conditions. These may contain larger compressed gas cartridges and, in some cases, a pyrotechnic trigger mechanism. Their carriage is also subject to airline approval and specific packing requirements.

What should you do before travelling?

Clarify the carriage of your inflatable lifejacket with the airline as early as possible, ideally when booking or immediately afterwards.

When contacting the airline, provide the following information as clearly as possible:

that the item is an inflatable lifejacket
that the CO₂ cartridge is used to inflate the lifejacket
the number of lifejackets you wish to carry
the number of fitted CO₂ cartridges
the number of spare cartridges
the CO₂ content of the cartridges in grams
a reference to the ICAO Technical Instructions or IATA DGR Table 2.3.A

Ask the airline for written approval. Ideally, the approval should be entered directly into your booking or shown on the booking confirmation. A general chat response is better than nothing, but it may still lead to questions at the airport.

Our practical advice is:

Always declare your inflatable lifejacket and CO₂ cartridges to the airline in advance.
Ask for written approval.
Carry the approval with you at the airport, either printed or digitally.
Whenever possible, pack the lifejacket in checked baggage.
Do not carry CO₂ cartridges loose or separately from the lifejacket.
Place spare cartridges directly with the lifejacket so that their purpose is clear if the baggage is inspected.
Pack the lifejacket in such a way that it cannot be accidentally activated.
Allow extra time at the airport.

Carriage in carry-on baggage is generally possible under the international rules, but in practice it may lead to more questions at the security checkpoint. For private air travel, we therefore usually recommend carrying the lifejacket in checked baggage, provided the airline allows this.

For connecting flights, you should also check whether all airlines involved approve carriage. This is especially important for codeshare flights or separately booked flight segments.

Current and older practical reports from customers

Unfortunately, the international rules are not always applied consistently in practice. We therefore provide the following current and older customer reports as practical guidance.

These reports are individual experiences. They do not replace approval from the airline and they do not determine how airport security authorities will decide in a particular case.

Air France

A customer reported that approval from Air France was possible, but that the clarification process took several days. In that case, confirmation was given only via chat and was not added to the ticket or booking. This led to questions at the security checkpoint in Munich. The lifejacket was ultimately accepted.

Air France currently lists self-inflating safety equipment as permitted subject to prior approval. At the same time, the Air France information also contains general references to small gas cartridges with a 50 ml or 28 g limit. These parallel references may lead to misunderstandings in practice. We therefore particularly recommend obtaining written approval from Air France in advance and making clear that the item is self-inflating safety equipment.

Condor

A customer recently reported a positive experience with Condor. After the request had been forwarded to the Special Assistance Team, the customer received an updated booking confirmation for the carriage of the lifejacket.

Condor currently lists automatic lifejackets with CO₂ cartridges as items that must be registered in advance. According to Condor’s own information, carriage is possible in checked baggage, but not in carry-on baggage. Condor also specifies a maximum of 60 g CO₂ per cartridge. We therefore recommend registering the automatic lifejacket through the Special Assistance Team and requesting written confirmation for the booking.

Frankfurt, Dresden and Bremen airports

Older customer reports indicate that there have been problems at Frankfurt, Dresden and Bremen airports with CO₂ cartridges for inflatable lifejackets. According to these reports, reference was made to the responsibility of the German Federal Police. CO₂ cartridges with a content of more than 28 g were reportedly not accepted or were removed from baggage.

These reports may not reflect current practice. However, they show that different interpretations at security checkpoints may still occur despite the international rules.

Further information

Further questions

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us by phone. We will do our best to advise you before your flight.

Tel.: +49 (4103) 125-0