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October 23, 2012 - There's good news for airline
passengers who need to use medical oxygen. The
Federal Aviation Administration has approved
seven additional portable oxygen concentrator
models for use aboard airplanes, bringing the
total number of approved units to 21.
The newly authorized devices are the AirSep
Focus, AirSep FreeStyle 5, Inogen One G3, Inova
Labs LifeChoice Activox, Respironics Simply Go,
Precision Medical EasyPulse, and the SeQual
SAROS.
Portable oxygen concentrators are small,
portable devices that separate oxygen from
nitrogen and other gases in the air and provide
oxygen to users at greater than 90 percent
concentration. They do not use compressed or
liquid oxygen, which the government classifies
as hazardous material.
The Department of Transportation requires that
U.S. airlines and foreign air carriers flying
into the United States allow passengers to use
portable oxygen concentrators approved by the
FAA during all phases of a flight if the unit
displays a manufacturer's label that indicates
it meets FAA requirements for portable medical
electronic devices.
The Department strongly encourages airlines to
voluntarily allow the inflight use of oxygen
concentrators even if not labeled as
FAA-approved because they pose no safety danger.
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