FAA portable oxygen concentrator rules (2026)

US rules for flying with a portable oxygen concentrator (POC) sit in two places. The FAA’s operating rule, 14 CFR 121.574, says which POCs may be used on board and how. The DOT’s Air Carrier Access Act rules, 14 CFR 382.133 and 382.23, say what airlines must accept and what they may ask of you. This guide summarizes both, cited to the regulation text. Your airline’s own procedure still applies, so call it before you book.

1. Your POC must be acceptable to the FAA

Under 121.574(e)(1), a POC may be carried and used during all phases of flight if it:

• is legally marketed in the US under FDA requirements;
• does not radiate radio-frequency emissions that interfere with aircraft systems;
• generates a maximum oxygen pressure below 200 kPa gauge (29.0 psig) at 20 °C;
• contains no hazardous materials except batteries allowed under 49 CFR 175.10; and
• bears a permanent exterior label, in red lettering, reading: “The manufacturer of this POC has determined this device conforms to all applicable FAA acceptance criteria for POC carriage and use on board aircraft.”

Older models without a label. Twenty-four POCs approved by the FAA before May 24, 2016 are exempt from the label requirement. They include the AirSep Focus, FreeStyle and FreeStyle 5, DeVilbiss iGo, Inogen One, One G2 and One G3, Invacare Solo2 and XPO2, Respironics EverGo and SimplyGo, and SeQual Eclipse and eQuinox (121.574(e)(1)(v)). The FAA’s AC 120-95A says the passenger and the airline can confirm an unlabeled device by matching its maker and model to that list.

Current models’ makers state they meet the criteria. Inogen says the Rove 6 “meets FAA acceptance criteria for carriage and use onboard aircraft”, and CAIRE says the FreeStyle Comfort “meets FAA requirements for commercial airline travel”. Check that the red label is physically on your unit.

2. US airlines must accept a compliant POC

For US carriers, 382.133(a) and (c) require the airline to let a passenger with a disability use a labeled POC (or a listed model) in the cabin. This applies on aircraft originally designed for more than 19 passenger seats. The exceptions are a device that doesn’t meet FAA requirements, or one that can’t be stowed and used consistent with TSA, FAA and PHMSA rules. Foreign carriers flying to, from or within the US have parallel obligations under 382.133(b) and (d). On-demand air taxis are excluded.

3. Batteries: plan for 150% of flight time

Under 382.133(h):

• The airline must tell you the expected maximum flight duration of each segment. It must do so within 48 hours of your telling them you’ll use the device, or 24 hours before departure, whichever is earlier.
• The airline may require enough fully charged batteries to power the device for at least 150% of that maximum duration. This is based on the battery maker’s runtime estimate and your physician’s statement.
• Spare batteries must be packaged and protected from short circuit and physical damage under PHMSA rules (382.133(e)(3)).

Do the arithmetic at your prescribed setting, not setting 1. For example, a 5-hour maximum flight duration means 7.5 hours of battery at your setting.

4. Paperwork: the physician’s statement

Under 382.23(b), an airline may require a medical certificate from a passenger who “needs medical oxygen during a flight”. This is a written statement from your physician that you can complete the flight safely without extraordinary medical assistance. It must be dated within 10 days of your initial departing flight. You don’t need a new one for the return leg of the same trip; the regulation’s example uses a January outbound and an April return. 382.133(e)(6) requires US airlines to tell you about this requirement for POCs during the reservation process.

5. What the airline must tell you when you book

If you ask, a US airline must tell you during the reservation process (382.133(e)):

1. any manufacturer-label requirement;
2. the maximum weight and dimensions of a device that can be accommodated in the cabin;
3. the battery requirement and spare-battery packaging rules;
4. any requirement to contact the operating carrier 48 hours before departure to learn the maximum flight duration;
5. any requirement to check in up to one hour before the general check-in deadline; and
6. the physician’s-statement requirement.

On codeshares, the marketing carrier must either give you this information or tell you to contact the operating carrier (382.133(g)).

6. On board: seat and stowage

Under 121.574(e)(2):

• No exit row. No person operating a POC may occupy an exit seat.
• Stowage. During taxi, takeoff and landing, the device must be under the seat in front of you, or in another approved location that doesn’t block the aisle or the entry to the row.
• Seat location. If you use it in flight, your seat must not restrict anyone’s access to an exit or the aisle.
• No open flame or smoking within 10 feet of the POC (121.574(b)).

If you don’t meet the airline’s conditions for the device, it may deny boarding, but it must give you a written explanation (382.133(h)(3)).

Checklist

1. Confirm the red FAA-conformance label is on your POC, or that your model is on the pre-2016 list.
2. Tell the airline at booking that you’ll use a POC, and ask for its device size limits and maximum flight durations.
3. Calculate the battery requirement at your prescribed setting: maximum duration × 1.5.
4. Get a physician’s statement dated within 10 days of your first departure.
5. Pack spare batteries protected against short circuit, in the cabin.
6. Book a non-exit-row seat and plan to stow the POC under the seat in front.

Verdict

The rules are workable if you plan. Buy a POC that carries the FAA label and has enough battery capacity for 150% of your longest leg at your actual setting. Get the physician’s statement inside the 10-day window, and confirm the airline’s procedure before you book. Battery capacity is the requirement travellers most often underestimate. HHZ’s portable concentrator guide compares published runtimes.

Planning batteries and rentals

Work out how many batteries to bring with battery life by model, and if you don’t own a POC, see renting a portable concentrator for travel.

Other travel guides

See cruising with oxygen and oxygen at altitude: Denver and the mountains.

See also: Flying with a CPAP: TSA rules.