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Bloomberg
Turkish Airlines said it expects measures barring large electronic devices from the cabins of aircraft leaving Istanbul for the US to be lifted on Wednesday, while long-haul competitor Emirates is counting on the restrictions being removed from its Dubai hub in the near future.
Shares of Turkish Air rose 2.4 percent following the comments from Chief Executive Bilal Eksi via Twitter. Emirates meanwhile said it’s ‘working hard’ with authorities to apply enhanced airport security guidelines required by the US Department of Homeland Security (USDHS) to secure exemption from the ban.
“We hope that we will receive validation that all measures have been successfully implemented so that the electronics ban can be lifted as soon as possible for our US flights,†the Dubai-based carrier said in an email.
Abu Dhabi, the home base of Etihad Airways, became the first airport to see the laptops ban lifted on Sunday, aided by a so called pre-clearance regime in which travellers are subject to US border checks before boarding the plane. The lifting of the ban at major Mideast hubs will spell relief for carriers after the measures led some customers to switch to airlines where they could still use large personal
devices en route.
Abu Dhabi’s laptops ban was lifted after US Transportation Security Administration officials assessed enhanced security procedures in a two-hour check late Saturday, according to Abdul Majeed Al Khoori, acting chief executive officer of the airport’s parent company.
The airport was one of 10 in the Middle East and North Africa where American authorities stopped passengers from bringing electronic items larger than mobile phones onto US-bound planes as of late March. US officials are pushing hubs to beef up security after intelligence reports indicated terrorist groups may be capable of hiding bombs in the devices.
Saudia expects laptop
ban to be lifted by July 19
Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia) expects the in-cabin ban on laptops and other large electronics on direct flights to the United States to be lifted by July 19, state news agency SPA reported on Tuesday.
The airline is working with the country’s civil aviation authority, GACA, to implement new security measures for US-bound flights announced by USDHS last week. Saudia flies to the United States from airports in Jeddah and Riyadh.
In March, US banned laptops in cabins on flights to United States originating at 10 airports in eight countries — Egypt, Morocco, Jordan, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and Turkey.