IATA 61st Edition Significant Changes

The Labor Day Holiday generally symbolizes the end of summer for many people. For many businesses it is the end of their fiscal year. For parents in many areas it means back to school. For the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) it means releasing notices of proposed rulemakings. We also have OSHA publishing their Top Ten Violations. Finally, it is time for IATA to publish the list of significant changes for their upcoming edition.

Keep in mind, these changes are in the 61^st edition of the IATA. It goes into force January 1, 2020. The other thing to remember is these are just a list of “significant” changes. Some of the changes always seem a bit cryptic to me. Plus, I’m one of those folks that takes the old one and compares it to the new one to better understand exactly how it changed. Guess it comes from being a visual learner.

If you should want to read the list of changes, it can be found here. A brief overview of some of the changes are shown below for quick reference. There is a little something for everyone in the industry. As you read through, there are some times where I added some information to supplement the change as it is stated on the publication.

Brief Summary of Some Proposed Changes by Section:

2.3.5.1 Aerosol containers of Division 2.2 materials are now allowed in carry-on and checked baggage. There will be an update to Table 2.3.A as well to reflect this change.
2.6.7.1 The Excepted Quantity mark must now be on only one face of the package. This one surprised me a bit as I always thought it was like any other mark and had to be just on one face of the package. This will be incorporated via a new paragraph
4.2 All sorts of changes here.
- The “pointy hand” was removed from Bromobenzyl cyanides, solid UN3449. This can also now be shipped on passenger planes.
- For UN3082 and UN3077 there is now a notation in the Hazard Label column that these must have the Environmentally Hazardous Substance mark found in 7.1.5.3.3. The assumption at the moment is that Special Provision A197 will still be there.
- UN2389 Furan is now allowed on both passenger and cargo planes with the removal of the “pointy hand” symbol.
- On the Lithium batteries installed in cargo transport unit shipping name the dagger symbol was added. This is UN3536 that was added to this year’s 60^th edition. As far as we know, these are still forbidden on both types of aircrafts.
- A Special Provision was added to UN1700 Tear gas candles. That entry will not have A802 in column M along with the existing A1.
5.0.2.11 There are 2 changes under the All Packed in One option. The first is a clarification to paragraph (c) for what dangerous goods can go with UN2814 and UN2900. Also, there is more clarification for Q-value exemptions.
All Packing Instructions that utilize single packagings will now have the exact code listed under the “composite” option rather than the word “all” in the Single Packagings. This one was worded a bit oddly for me until I actually looked at a Packing Instruction and the chart in question.
Several other individual Packing Instructions are changing
- PI 650 for UN3373
- PI 960 and Y 960 for UN3316 for chemical kits and first aid kits
- PI 968 through PI 970 for Lithium metal batteries will now have something known as “aggregate lithium content”
7.1.3.1 Changed to include the limited quantity mark environmentally hazardous mark and lithium battery mark must only be on one face of the package. Again, I thought this was an understood requirement but apparently there was a need to spell it out.
Some Appendices changed too:
- Appendix A for the Glossary has some revisions and additions
- Appendix D sees some updates to a few competent authorities.
- Appendix E has revisions to some Suppliers and Testing Facilities. ICC is no longer listed, but we can certainly help you with supplies and have connections with several test facilities.
- Appendix H is supposed to have better information on Competency-Based Training and most of the information that is in 1.5.7 is not going to be in Appendix I
- Appendix I is back again in this 62^nd edition. It will discuss the changes coming for 2021 from the 21^st UN Model Regulations and the ICAO Dangerous Goods Panel. While this is good to know now for planning, let’s get a good understanding of this 61^st edition for now.

If you are interested, we are currently allowing folks to pre-order the new IATA and will continue to take orders all the way through October 18. Contact our Customer Relations Department today.

As always, ICC will be one of the first to let you know about any changes to other regulations as they are announced. We just recently published a blog on the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) from the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) on docket HM-219C. Be sure you stay in touch.

For more, visit ICC Compliance Center’s website or call one of our Regulatory Specialists today! USA: 888-442-9628 | Canada: 888-977-4834