Airplane In-Seat Power Outlets
More and more planes these days are being equipped with modern amenities like WiFi and in seat AC power. The latter has become incredibly common, and yet almost nobody even knows it is there. A few years back I spent some quality time peering under airplane seats on my hands and knees to try and identify exactly where these elusive outlets were. Now that I know where they are and what they feel like, its easy to plug things in just by reaching down. My flight to australia was equipped with such outlets, and after plugging my laptop in, the woman across the aisle from my inquired as to how she too could plug in a device to charge. After telling her where it was and watching her nearly tear apart the seat trying to find it, I showed her. I figured I’d throw a post up here so you guys can all see exactly what these outlets look like and will know ahead of time what can be plugged into them.
The majority of the AC outlets I have come across on planes are EmPower brand single receptacles that accept a variety of plugs and output 110V AC power at 60Hz. They accept North American grounded and ungrounded plugs, Australia and New Zealand grounded and ungrounded plugs, and European ungrounded plugs (CEE 7/16). You can see all those plug types in the specifications sheet here if you’re interested. Power is only available once the plug has been inserted all the way, and is generally not available during taxi/takeoff.
Seatguru.com has been my goto site for determining what planes have what features before I fly (as well as for identifying any seats that are less than ideal). You should check it out to see the location and availability of power on your plane before you fly. Most commonly the outlets are underneath the seat, right in between two seats. To find them, reach down under the armrest and feel for a small square box. It’s pretty easy to identify by feel. It is right next to the life jacket pouch, as you can see in the photo above, so be careful where you’re tugging! Enjoy, and happy flying!
