Starting January 15, 2018 any passenger with battery-powered baggage has to be able to remove the battery in order to bring the bag on American Airlines flight. The carrier announced the new policy last week, citing concerns about hazards of placing lithium-ion battery power banks in cargo hold.

Alaska Airlines and Delta Air Lines rolled out similar rules, while United and Southwest Airlines said they were reviewing the issue.

Many of the smart bags rely on lithium-ion batteries, that can overheat and pose fire hazard. Last fall, U.S. Department of Transportation banned Samsung Galaxy Note 7 from flights after defective batteries caused phones to burst into flames. 

Alaska, American and Delta all say they'll require clients to remove batteries from any smart bag they check and pack their batteries in a carry-on, which is similar to the way travelers are asked to bring spare batteries for other electronic devices in the cabin, where crew can more easily identify overheating devices and respond to a fire.

Passengers can leave their batteries installed in carry-on smart bags, but still have to be able to remove them in case they have to check the bag at the gate or on later flights.