EmPower is a brand name that refers to three different power outlets available on commercial airlines:
* 15-volt, 75-watt DC connector (now called EmPower Classic by the vendor)
* 5-volt, 10-watt USB power-only jacks
* 110-volt AC power jacks (some also have an EmPower USB jack)
Original 15-volt EmPower connector
15-volt
DC connector type found on many commercial
airlines
An airline is a company that provides air transport services for traveling passengers or freight (cargo). Airlines use aircraft to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for codeshare agreements, in ...
designed to provide power to travelers' electronic devices. The system is limited to 75 watts.
[EmPower Product Descriptio]
www.astronics.com Accessed 2011-01-16. The use of a special connector is to prevent laptops charging at altitude and ensure that only approved adapters can be used.
Some airlines offer it only in business class or only in certain types of aircraft or flights. Travelers in the 2000s bought EmPower adapters, frequently from
duty-free shop
A duty-free shop or store is a retail outlet whose goods are exempt from the payment of certain local or national taxes and duties, on the requirement that the goods will be sold to travelers who will take them out of the country, who will ...
s at airports, to run laptops and other electronic equipment without using battery power.
Supporting airlines include:
* Some
Air France
Air France (; legally ''Société Air France, S.A.''), stylised as AIRFRANCE, is the flag carrier of France, and is headquartered in Tremblay-en-France. The airline is a subsidiary of the Air France-KLM Group and is one of the founding members ...
planes
* Some
Air India
Air India is the flag carrier of India with its main hub at Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi, and secondary hubs at Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai, alo ...
planes
* Some
American Airlines
American Airlines, Inc. is a major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, and is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the ...
planes
* Some
British Airways
British Airways plc (BA) is the flag carrier of the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in London, England, near its main Airline hub, hub at Heathrow Airport.
The airline is the second largest UK-based carrier, based on fleet size and pass ...
planes
* Some
Qantas
Qantas ( ), formally Qantas Airways Limited, is the flag carrier of Australia, and the largest airline by fleet size, international flights, and international destinations in Australia and List of largest airlines in Oceania, Oceania. A foundi ...
planes
* Some
United Airlines
United Airlines, Inc. is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Chicago, Chicago, Illinois that operates an extensive domestic and international route network across the United States and six ...
planes
* Some
Virgin Atlantic
Virgin Atlantic, a trading name of Virgin Atlantic Airways Limited and Virgin Atlantic International Limited, is a British airline with its head office in Crawley, West Sussex, England. The airline was established in 1984 as British Atlantic A ...
planes
* Almost all
Alitalia
Alitalia - Società Aerea Italiana S.p.A., operating as Alitalia (), was an Italian airline which was once the flag carrier and largest airline of Italy. The company had its head office in Fiumicino, in the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital. ...
planes
* Almost all
Cathay Pacific
Cathay Pacific Airways Limited, or simply Cathay Pacific, is the flag carrier of Hong Kong, with its head office and main airline hub, hub located at Hong Kong International Airport. The airline's operations and its subsidiaries have schedule ...
planes
(The
SeatGuru
SeatGuru.com is a website that features aircraft seat maps, seat reviews, and a color-coded system to identify superior and substandard airline seats. It also featured information about in-flight amenities and airline specific information regardin ...
web site contains more detailed information on which flights support EmPower.)
Adapters exist to connect EmPower plugs to
cigarette lighter receptacle
An automobile auxiliary power outlet (also known as car cigarette lighter or auxiliary power outlet) in an automobile was initially designed to power an electrically heated cigarette lighter,LifeWire.com article''“From Car Cigarette Lighte ...
s and most EmPower power adapters come with these.
EmPower is a
trademark
A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a form of intellectual property that consists of a word, phrase, symbol, design, or a combination that identifies a Good (economics and accounting), product or Service (economics), service f ...
registered initially by Primex Technologies (VA) and assigned to Astronics Advanced Electronic Systems, Inc., in
Kirkland, Washington
Kirkland is a city in King County, Washington, United States. A suburb east of Seattle, its population was 92,175 in the 2020 U.S. census which made it the sixth largest city in King County and the twelfth largest city in the state of Washington. ...
, United States. Subsequently, the trademark has been expanded to include not just the