Prohibited items
There are plenty of items that you can’t take on a plane. We’ve prepared a list of prohibited items according to carrier rules and EU safety standards so that you can have all the information in one place.
If you still have questions about an item you’d like to take, it’s best to check the specific policies of the carriers you’re traveling with.
Items prohibited in the cabin
Items that can pose a danger or cause harm to others are not allowed in the cabin.
The following items aren’t allowed onboard:
Dangerous items
- Guns, firearms, and other devices that discharge projectiles — devices capable, or appearing capable, of being used to cause serious injury by discharging a projectile, including:
- Firearms of all types, such as pistols, revolvers, rifles, and shotguns
- Toy guns, replicas, and imitation firearms capable of being mistaken for real weapons, component parts of firearms, excluding telescopic sights
- Compressed air and CO2 guns, such as pistols, pellet guns, rifles, and ball bearing guns
- Signal flare pistols and starter pistols
- Bows, crossbows, and arrows
- Harpoon guns and spear guns
- Slingshots and catapults
- Stunning devices — devices designed specifically to stun or immobilize, including:
- Devices for shocking, such as stun guns, tasers, and stun batons
- Animal stunners and animal killers
- Disabling and incapacitating chemicals, gasses, and sprays, such as mace, pepper sprays, capsicum sprays, tear gas, acid sprays, and animal repellent sprays
- Objects with a sharp point or sharp edge capable of being used to cause serious injury, including:
- Items designed for chopping, such as axes, hatchets, and cleavers.
- Ice axes and ice picks
- Razor blades
- Box cutters
- Knives with blades of more than 6 cm
- Scissors with blades of more than 6 cm as measured from the fulcrum
- Martial arts equipment with a sharp point or sharp edge
- Swords and sabres
- Workmen’s tools — tools capable of being used either to cause serious injury or to threaten the safety of an aircraft, including:
- Crowbars
- Drills and drill bits, including cordless portable power drills
- Tools with a blade or a shaft of more than 6 cm capable of use as a weapon, such as screwdrivers and chisels
- Saws, including cordless portable power saws
- Blowtorches
- Bolt guns and nail guns
- Blunt instruments — objects capable of being used to cause serious injury when used to hit, including:
- Baseball and softball bats
- Clubs and batons, such as billy clubs, blackjacks, and nightsticks
- Martial arts equipment
- Explosives and incendiary substances and devices — substances and devices capable, or appearing capable, of being used to cause serious injury or to pose a threat to the safety of aircraft, including:
- Ammunition
- Blasting caps
- Detonators and fuses
- Replica or imitation explosive devices
- Mines, grenades, and other explosive military stores
- Fireworks and other pyrotechnics
- Smoke-generating canisters and smoke-generating cartridges
- Dynamite, gunpowder, and plastic explosives
- Any other article (substance or device) capable, or appearing to be capable of causing serious injury or posing a threat to the safety of the plane or which is being used to cause serious injury and which is not commonly used in security restricted areas, e.g. martial arts equipment, swords, sabres, etc.
Sharp objects and weapons
You can’t take any items which can be used as weapons. Examples include knives, straight razors, razor blades, scissors with blades measuring more than 6 cm (2.4. in), or gun imitations.
Prescription medication that you administer with a syringe or hypodermic needle (such as insulin, for example) may be allowed in your cabin baggage. You need to bring a prescription with the name of the medication, and the issuing pharmacy or doctor.
Liquids and gels
You can only carry small amounts of liquids or gels in your cabin baggage.
In most cases, liquids and gels must be carried in containers no bigger than 100 ml. However, you can check the regulations of the airports you’ll travel through — London City Airport for example allows passengers to carry up to 2L of liquids or gels on a plane.
If you need to travel with larger liquid containers, you need to store them in your checked baggage.
If you have a connecting flight, don’t buy any liquids or gels in large containers at the duty-free shops (unless you can access your checked baggage and pack them there). They may be confiscated before boarding your next flight.
Electronic devices
There may be restrictions on bringing certain electronic devices because of possible interference with the plane’s navigational equipment. For example, lithium-ion batteries should not exceed 100 Wh.
Items prohibited in the cargo hold
Items that can pose a danger to the aircraft, passengers, or property are not permitted on the plane. The following items are not allowed in the cargo hold:
Dangerous items
- Guns, firearms, and other devices that discharge projectiles — devices capable, or appearing capable of being used to cause serious injury by discharging a projectile, including:
- Firearms of all types, such as pistols, revolvers, rifles, shotguns
- Toy guns, replicas, and imitation firearms capable of being mistaken for real weapons
- Component parts of firearms, excluding telescopic sights
- Compressed air and CO2 guns, such as pistols, pellet guns, rifles, and ball bearing guns
- Signal flare pistols and starter pistols
- Bows, crossbows, and arrows
- Harpoon guns and spear guns
- Slingshots and catapults
- Heavy tools including hammers, wrenches, and crowbars
- Fuel or any other flammable liquids or solid substances that cause chemical reactions, gas and gas containers, most lighters, and camping stoves
- (One Bic lighter, one book of matches, or one USB lighter may be allowed in the cabin of the aircraft.)
- Paint, turpentine, white spirit, and paint thinner
- Unidentifiable liquids in unmarked containers
- Chemicals, toxic substances, or infectious substances
- More than one liter of edible oil in total
- Lithium-ion battery-powered vehicles (including segways and hoverboards) other than any wheelchair or mobility equipment
- Lithium-ion battery-powered devices that exceed 100 Wh
- Oxygen cylinders, oxygen generators, and canned oxygen (also known as recreational or flavored oxygen)
- Alcoholic beverages with an alcohol content of 70% or more
- Oxidizing and corrosive chemicals
- Acids, mercury, and alkalis
- Bleach and bleaching powder
- Pepper spray, mace, or bear spray
- Explosives of any kind
- Poisonous paints and toxins
- Radioactive materials, including medicinal or commercial isotopes
- Fire extinguishers
- Any other article (substance or device) capable, or appearing to be capable of, causing serious injury or posing a threat to the safety of the plane
- Items that are prohibited by law, regulation, or order of any country or state your plane is flying to or from
- Items that might be unsuitable for carriage because they are dangerous or unsafe, because of their weight, size, shape, or character, or which are fragile or perishable.
Electronic devices and valuables
Electronic devices such as laptops or cameras are allowed in the cargo hold, but it’s best to take them with you in the cabin to keep them safe.
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