On Second Thought, Keep Your Laptop With You, FAA Says

In March, the Homeland Security Department announced it was planning on banning laptops on flights coming into the United States from the Middle East and North Africa. 

In June, DHS announced plans to expand that restriction and introduced additional security rules for all international flights coming into the US.

Now, it's been discovered that having passengers place laptops in their checked luggage might not be such a good idea either.

The Lithium-Iron batteries found inside laptops have a tendency to heat up, and therefore are a potential risk to start a fire in a suitcase that could spread easily throughout the cargo hold of an airplane, according to recent tests conducted by the Federal Aviation Administration. The fire could be especially damaging if it spread to an aerosol toiletry, like shaving cream or dry shampoo, creating a potential for an explosion. 

The FAA reported these findings in a paper that was filed to the International Civil Aviation Organization, an organization within the United Nations that proposes safety standards for airlines around the world.

The laptop ban has been lifted in parts and was never instated on domestic flights, so airlines and their governing bodies likely don't have too much to worry about.