The limits below come from the IATA passenger guidance revised for the 2026 regulations, with notes from the FAA, EASA, the Polish Civil Aviation Authority (ULC) and LOT. Airlines add their own limits on top, so treat this as the baseline and check your carrier before you pack.
Work out the watt-hours
IATA defines the Wh rating as the rated capacity in ampere-hours multiplied by the nominal voltage. For a LiPo, take 3.7 V per cell, as the FAA formula quoted by Oscar Liang does, and divide the mAh by 1000:
Wh = 3.7 V x cell count x capacity in Ah
| Pack | Calculation | Wh |
|---|---|---|
| 1S 450 mAh (whoop) | 3.7 x 0.45 | 1.7 |
| 4S 1500 mAh | 14.8 x 1.5 | 22.2 |
| 6S 1300 mAh | 22.2 x 1.3 | 28.9 |
| 6S 5000 mAh | 22.2 x 5.0 | 111 |
| 6S 8000 mAh | 22.2 x 8.0 | 177.6 |
Typical 4S and 6S freestyle packs come out at 20-30 Wh. Only big long-range or cinelifter packs get near the thresholds. For Li-ion packs, use the nominal voltage printed on the label rather than assuming 3.7 V.
IATA requires every lithium-ion battery to have its Wh rating marked on the case. If staff cannot confirm it from the battery or its documentation, the airline may refuse to carry it. Oscar Liang makes sure each pack is clearly labelled with nominal voltage, capacity and Wh, and keeps the original label, because security may check it. A handwritten label is weak evidence: his self-built 18650 packs with handwritten labels were taken away a couple of times.
The limits for spare batteries
A LiPo you carry for the drone is a spare battery. The IATA table for 2026 sets these limits:
| Wh per battery | Carry-on | Checked bag | Airline approval |
|---|---|---|---|
| up to 100 Wh | yes | no | no |
| over 100, up to 160 Wh | yes, at most 2 | no | yes |
| over 160 Wh | no | no | only as cargo |
Spare batteries never go in checked baggage, whatever their size. IATA also limits each passenger to 20 spare batteries of any type. The airline may approve more. The FAA sets no limit on the number of batteries under 100 Wh for personal use, but warns that many airlines have stricter limits on quantity and Wh. In the 100-160 Wh band, the FAA and ULC allow at most two spares per passenger.
Your airline can be stricter than any of this. LOT's help page about drones says the main battery and at most two spare batteries go in hand luggage, and that no single battery may exceed 160 Wh. For a pilot with a bag of eight 6S packs, that is the rule that matters, so ask the airline in writing before the trip. EASA's advice is the same: contact the operator if you are unsure about devices such as drones, and ask for approval for anything between 100 and 160 Wh.
For approval, IATA says the airline will want the Wh rating, the number of batteries and whether they are removable. When you carry many spares, it may require extra separation between them or a low state of charge, below 25%.
The drone, the radio and the goggles
Equipment with batteries installed should travel in the cabin. If a device does go in a checked bag, IATA requires it to be protected against damage and accidental activation, and completely switched off, not in sleep mode.
LOT allows the drone itself in either checked or hand luggage. If it goes in the hold, take the batteries out, pack them separately and protect them against short circuits, then carry them in the cabin. The same logic applies to a radio with 18650 cells or a goggle battery: once you take the battery out, it is a spare and goes in your hand luggage.
Oscar Liang carries the drone in his hand luggage with the props removed. He has also been told at check-in to put it in the checked bag, so leave room in the suitcase for that. Sharp tools such as hex drivers and pliers belong in the checked bag.
Power banks now have rules of their own. Under the 2026 IATA guidance you may carry at most two, each up to 100 Wh. You must not charge them from the aircraft's power, they should not go in the overhead locker, and they should not power other devices during taxi, take-off and landing. The IATA table lists power banks over 100 Wh as forbidden, so a large field-charging power bank may have to stay at home.
Packing the packs
Each spare battery has to be protected against short circuits on its own. IATA lists three ways: the original retail packaging, tape over the exposed terminals, or a separate plastic bag or protective pouch for each battery. Oscar Liang covers the XT30/XT60 and balance connectors with caps. He also spreads the packs over as many LiPo safe bags as needed.
A few more habits help:
- Put the packs at storage voltage. Oscar Liang uses 3.80-3.85 V per cell. IATA notes that airlines prefer spares below 25%, so if your airline asks for less, discharge further.
- Leave out any swollen, dented or damaged pack. Oscar's LiPo guide says never to travel with damaged batteries.
- Keep some space between batteries, as IATA advises, instead of packing them tightly together.
- Keep all the batteries in one bag, separate from your other things. If security confiscates something, you lose only that bag.
- Print the airline's battery rules and keep the printout with the packs. Oscar Liang does this so he can show it if there is a dispute.
At security and at the gate
Oscar Liang's advice is to make the drone easy to check: take it out of the bag and put it in the tray yourself. He also avoids hobby jargon like "5-inch" or "quadcopter" and simply calls it a camera drone. If your LiPo bag has words like "explosion" or "fire" printed on it, he suggests covering them.
If your hand luggage is taken at the gate to go in the hold, IATA says to take out all lithium batteries and devices first. If a battery gets hot, smokes or swells during the flight, tell the crew straight away.
Rules for flying a drone differ from country to country, and some countries ban drones outright or set weight limits. Check the destination before you pack. For Poland, see the article on flying FPV legally in Poland on this site.