Ryanair Appears to Change Course, Allowing Vapes in Carry-On Bags

After this story was originally published Thursday, Ryanair changed its “general terms & conditions of carriage.” The phrase “electronic cigarettes” was removed from the heading “Passengers are prohibited from carrying the following items into either airport security restricted areas or Cabin Baggage or Checked Baggage” (section 8.9.1).

Under section 8.3.3, Ryanair added this statement:

“You may carry electronic cigarettes on board but are strictly forbidden to use electronic cigarettes or any other type of cigarette on board the aircraft.”

Gillian Golden of the Irish Vape Vendors Association (IVVA) told Vaping360 that the IVVA and the Independent British Vape Trade Association (IBVTA) had jointly written Ryanair on Thursday afternoon inquiring about the language in the online policy document. And, as noted in the original story, Ryanair promised comments to Vaping360 twice.

It isn’t certain if the policy change came because of the comments from the IVVA and the IBVTA, or the questions from Vaping360 — or either.

What matters is that vapers will have one less concern when making travel plans.

Ryanair, the world’s largest international airline, no longer allows vapor products on its planes, according to its published terms and conditions for passengers.

The company’s most recent “general terms & conditions of carriage” document specifically includes “electronic cigarettes” among items listed under the heading “Passengers are prohibited from carrying the following items into either airport security restricted areas or Cabin Baggage or Checked Baggage.”

That means that vapers will have to either buy vaping products when they reach their destinations, or use other nicotine products that are allowed on Ryanair’s planes, like smokeless tobacco, NRT products, or combustible tobacco.

Vaping360 requested comment from Ryanair’s press office. We were told a statement would be coming today (Thursday), then that it would be issued tomorrow. We will update the story if the company offers some explanation or clarification.

Typically when an airline changes a baggage policy, others soon follow. Since they coordinate security and safety strategies, it would be unusual for one airline to make a decision like this in isolation. So it’s possible that prohibiting vapes from all flights could be adopted by other airlines.

Ryanair is based in Dublin, Ireland. According to the International Air Transport Association, it is the largest international airline (measured by international passenger bookings) in the world. The carrier grew rapidly from a small regional company to become a European powerhouse by copying the Southwest Airlines model of low-cost, no-frills service.

In 2015, ECigIntelligence reported that Ryanair had signed a promotional deal with Swiss e-cig company Dansmoke, which sells cigalikes and ego-type devices throughout Europe. That campaign — which involved Dansmoke ads printed on Ryanair boarding passes — had nothing to do with the company’s luggage and cargo policy though.