The United States and the United Kingdom – two of the biggest and busiest nations of the world – on Tuesday advised nine airline companies from eight countries to ban electronic devices larger than mobile phones on their direct incoming flights.
“The restrictions are in place due to evaluated intelligence and we think it’s the right thing to do and the right places to do it to secure the safety of the travelling public,” a US official said.
However, banned devices, which include laptops, tablets, and portable game consoles, among others, may still be stowed in the hold in checked baggage.
While this creates another bothersome hindrance for passengers and specified airlines alike, here’s a quick guide – first posted by CNN – to prepare yourself if you reside in the aforementioned countries and plan to travel to either the UK or US.
US: Dubai and Abu Dhabi (the United Arab Emirates), Jeddah and Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), Istanbul (Turkey), Doha (Qatar), Cairo (Egypt), Amman (Jordan), Casablanca (Morocco), and Kuwait
UK: Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Lebanon, Egypt, and Tunisia
US: Emirates Airline, Etihad Airways, Saudi Arabian Airlines, Turkish Airlines, Kuwait Airways, Qatar Airways, Egyptair, Royal Air Maroc, and Royal Jordanian Airlines
UK: British Airways, Turkish Airlines, Middle East Airlines, Egyptair, Saudia, EasyJet, Jet2.com, Monarch, Thomas Cook, Thomson, Pegasus Airways, Atlas-Global Airlines, Royal Jordanian, and Tunis Air
Laptops, cameras, gaming devices, tablets – such as iPads, and phablets
Nevertheless, if a passenger requires a certain medical device(s) aboard the aeroplane, it can be kept in the cabin following a security check.
All passengers travelling from the eight countries will be subject to the new emergency regulations. However, these do not affect the flight and cabin crews.
The US authorities issued the notification at 12 PM (noon) on Tuesday, whence airline corporations have four days to implement the new rules. Failure to do so will result in Federal Aviation Administration of the United States (FAA) to consider pulling their respective permissions, leading to flight not being “allowed to fly to the United States,†a senior US official mentioned.
On the other hand, the UK explained that such measures are set to be introduced soon, and will remain under review.
Turkish Airlines: People going to the US will be required to check in anything bigger than a smartphone starting March 25.
Emirates: The first flight under new regulations will be on the US-bound one from Dubai, scheduled to take off on Saturday.
Qatar Airways, EgyptAir: Orders to come into effect by March 24.
