Puff bars are classified as electronic cigarettes, which TSA state are under no circumstances allowed in your checked luggage but are allowed in your carry on bags.
Therefore, you can bring a puff bar on a plane, just as long as you store it in your carry on bag.
Let’s take a look at this in more detail, as well as if restrictions vary by airline, domestic and international travel, what happens if you are a minor and want to bring a Puff Bar on a plane, and if you can take a hit of a Puff Bar in flight.
Table of Contents
Bringing a Puff Bar in Your Checked Bag
As mentioned, Puff Bars are not allowed in your checked luggage.
This is because Puff Bars and electronic cigarettes, in general, are considered a fire risk, which can lead to disastrous consequences when flying.
Bringing a Puff Bar in Your Carry on Bag
Puff Bars are allowed in your carry on bag, just as long as “effective measures for preventing accidental activation of the heating element” are taken. This includes:
- Removing the battery from the device
- Separating the battery from the heating coil
- Placing the Puff Bar into a protective case
- Using a protective cover, safety latch, or locking device on the device’s heating coil activation button
Puff Bars Won’t Explode on the Plane
There is a very small but by no means impossible chance that a Puff Bar can explode, either when you are onboard or off a plane.
The reason that Puff Bars and other electronic cigarettes are not allowed in your checked luggage is because if there is a fire, it would be extremely dangerous and potentially disastrous.
At least if a fire occurs in the cabin, it could be put out by a member of the cabin crew or another passenger.
This is also why TSA state that “effective measures for preventing accidental activation of the heating element” should be followed.
Airline Regulations for Puff Bars
Restrictions on bringing items like a taser or pepper spray on a plane can vary by airline, but when it comes to Puff Bars and other electronic cigarettes, all airlines, whether that be Delta, Southwest, United, American Airlines, and all others, are all in alignment.
The airlines adhere by TSA guidelines, which means that a Puff Bar is allowed in your carry on bags but not your checked luggage.
Domestic vs. International Travel
Domestic Flights
If you are flying domestically within the USA, you can travel with a Puff Bar in your carry on bags, but not your checked luggage. This is regardless of airline.
International Flights
If you’re planning on flying internationally, it’s important to know that you might run into an issue bringing your Puff Bar on a plane.
This is because many countries around the world, including popular destinations such as Australia, India, Japan, Mexico, and Singapore, to name a few, have banned e-cigarettes.
The full list of the sale/distribution of e-cigarettes is banned in the following popular tourist destinations:
- Argentina
- Brazil
- Hong Kong:
- India
- Iran
- Japan (unless an e-cigarette is registered as a medicinal product)
- Nicaragua
- Singapore
- Thailand
Minors Probably Have Nothing to Worry About
Putting legality aside for a moment, if you are a minor and are planning on bringing a Puff Bar on a plane, it’s unlikely you will run into any trouble.
Puff bars are allowed in your hand luggage, and it isn’t as if the TSA screen for ID either.
However, if you get stopped for any other reason, a TSA agent may take a closer look at your bag and will probably be able to tell that you are a minor.
Don’t Take Hit of a Puff Bar on the Plane
Taking a hit of a Puff Bar on a plane is a very bad idea.
It could lead to you getting arrested and fined tens of thousands of dollars.
If a flight is diverted, you tamper with a smoke detector, or you fail to comply with a crew member’s instruction, then the more likely the consequences are to be severe.
In short, however much you want that hit, it’s not worth it. Just want until you get to your destination. The same applies to chewing tobacco too.
Ella Dunham, a Freelance Travel Journalist and Marketing Manager, boasts an impressive career spanning eight years in the travel and tourism sectors.
Honored as one of "30 Under 30" by TTG Media (the world’s very first weekly travel trade newspaper), a "Tour Operator Travel Guru" and "Legend Award" winner, Ella is also a Fellow of the Institute of Travel, a Member of the Association of Women Travel Executives, has completed over 250 travel modules, and hosts travel-focused segments on national radio shows where she provides insights on travel regulations and destinations.
Ella has visited over 40 countries (with 10 more planned this year).