AACM approves 28 extra and charter flights for Chinese New Year to cope with increased air transport demand and appeals to passengers to comply with the requirement for carriage of lithium batteries on board aircraft

To cope with the increased demand on air transport during the Chinese Lunar New Year, the Civil Aviation Authority of Macao SAR (AACM) has approved a total of 28 extra and charter flights between Macao and mainland China, Taiwan China, Japan, Republic of Korea and Singapore, facilitating the public to travel in and out of Macao by air means. AACM also takes the opportunity to appeal to the Macao residents to comply with the requirement for the carriage of lithium batteries on board aircraft.

Among the 28 extra and charter flights approved, 17 are destined to Shanghai, 2 to Zhengzhou, 3 to Kaohsiung, 3 to Sapporo and 1 to Seoul, which are all applied and operated by Air Macau.

“The demand for air transport is always high during holidays or vacation. Although the coming Chinese New Year is only one month away from the last Christmas, and the number of public holidays is limited to a few days, the outbound travel by the Macao residents is still buoyant; the demand for air transport is high; and as a result, the number of extra and charter flights is fairly good.” said AACM. Upon receiving the flight applications, the Authority immediately processed the assessment work in accordance with the relevant requirements to cope with the traffic need.

The Authority also takes the opportunity to appeal to the Macao residents to comply with the requirement for the carriage of lithium batteries on board aircraft. All departing passengers must comply with the following provisions when carrying lithium batteries on board: (Wh = Watt hour = Amps x Voltage)

1.Lithium batteries of 100Wh or less must be carried in cabin or hand carry baggage but not in checked-in baggage;

2.Lithium batteries of more than 100Wh, OR if for health reasons or other special reasons passengers must carry mobility aids or portable medical electronic devices that are powered by lithium batteries, passengers must make the request to the aircraft operator. With the approval of the aircraft operator, passengers can then follow the instructions of the aircraft operator to put the batteries in hand carry baggage or checked-in baggage.

The details of the above requirement can be found in the AACM website – “Laws, Regulations and Multilateral Conventions – Aeronautical Circular” at http://www.aacm.gov.mo/law_notice_list.php?cid=9&pageid=140