Laptop ban to expand, perhaps

[Guest]

If so talk about a revenue opportunity, set up stands at all airports in North America with overseas arrivals, rent out laptops with the guarantee that all data will be wiped upon their return. All the business passenger then needs is a memory stick loaded with the data they need to work. A def. win/ win

[boestar]

Likely not an option.  This would be a logistical nightmare.  Needless to say you cannot meet the software requirements for everyone.

 

[Guest]

Where there is a will, there will be a way 

[Seeker]

Don't see the advantage to renting one at destination vs simply putting your own in the checked luggage.

Personally, there is no way I would trust a rental computer for my business and personal use no matter how sincere their "promises" to erase everything after I returned it.

[ILB]

16 minutes ago, seeker said:

Don't see the advantage to renting one at destination vs simply putting your own in the checked luggage.

Personally, there is no way I would trust a rental computer for my business and personal use no matter how sincere their "promises" to erase everything after I returned it.

Wouldn't trust a rental either.  And, I used to put my laptop in my checked bag.  Then my screen broke.  Hardly surprising, given the level of care give to checked bags on occasion, or, more likely, the weight put on top of it when five other bags are stacked on top.  And then a baggage handler showed me how he can get into a locked-shut zipper bag in 2 seconds.

[Seeker]

1 minute ago, ILB said:

Wouldn't trust a rental either.  And, I used to put my laptop in my checked bag.  Then my screen broke.  Hardly surprising, given the level of care give to checked bags on occasion, or, more likely, the weight put on top of it when five other bags are stacked on top.  And then a baggage handler showed me how he can get into a locked-shut zipper bag in 2 seconds.

Virtually guaranteed to be damaged if placed close to the side but if cushioned between soft clothing in the middle of the case I wouldn't expect a problem.  The theft issue, OTOH, is real.  If I was faced with the option of having no computer or having to check it I'd get a cheap Netbook or basic laptop, keep no personal data on the laptop, encrypt the crap out of it and then if it went missing - claim it and replace it.

[Jaydee]

Jet Blue diverted due to lap top fire

 

http://www.fox5ny.com/news/258002846-story?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=facebook

[Maverick]

There's an opportunity for Canadian carriers here I think. 

 

[Guest]

On 31/05/2017 at 7:35 AM, Malcolm said:

Where there is a will, there will be a way 

Turns out rentals are not the way, just a change in procedures.

US laptop ban lifted on Emirates and Turkish Airlines

• 2 hours ago
• From the section Business

• http://www.bbc.com/news/business-40504049

Emirates has said the cabin ban on laptops no longer applies on its flights to the United States.

In March, the US banned laptops and other large electronic devices to and from eight mostly Muslim nations, fearing bombs may be concealed in them.

Emirates, which flies to the US from its Dubai hub, said it worked with US authorities to meet new security rules.

Turkish Airlines said it was also now allowing passengers travelling to the US to take their laptops onboard.

The two airlines join Etihad, which saw the ban lifted on Sunday for its flights from Abu Dhabi after US authorities found it had put tighter security checks in place.

Emirates said in a statement: "Effective immediately, the electronics ban has been lifted for Emirates' flights from Dubai International Airport to the USA."

• US holds off expanding airline laptop ban

The airline, which flies to 12 US cities from Dubai, thanked customers for "their understanding and patience during the last few months".

Turkish Airlines said on Twitter that all electronic devices would be allowed on its US flights from Wednesday.

Airport security

Airlines had expressed hope that new guidelines announced last week would pave the way for the lifting of the electronics ban.

The measures include enhanced screening, more thorough vetting of passengers and the wider use of bomb-sniffer dogs in 105 countries.

According to reports in Turkish media, US and UK officials visited Turkey's main international airport in Istanbul on Tuesday.Image copyright Getty Images

Turkey has recently started using sophisticated tomography imaging devices for X-ray and ultrasound screening at Istanbul's Ataturk International Airport.

Under the March rules, devices "larger than a smartphone" were not allowed in the cabins of flights from Turkey, Morocco, Jordan, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

The UK imposed similar rules to the US, but applied them to different countries.

The boss of Turkish Airlines has suggested he expects the UK to lift the ban for his airline soon as well.

In March, the UK government said devices larger than 16.0cm x 9.3cm x 1.5cm would not be allowed on direct flights from Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Tunisia and Saudi Arabia.

[Guest]

The revised rules kick in on Oct 26th.

Airlines get ready for new US security rules from Thursday

REUTERS|

Updated: Oct 24, 2017, 10.39 PM IST

WASHINGTON: New rules on all U.S.-bound flights take effect on Thursday including stricter passenger screening to comply with government security measures designed to avoid expanding an in-cabin ban on laptops, airlines said Tuesday.

Airlines contacted by Reuters said the new measures, which could include short security interviews with passengers, would be in place by Thursday.

They will affect 325,000 airline passengers on about 2,000 commercial flights arriving daily 

in the United States, on 180 airlines from 280 airports in 105 countries, and industry trade group Airlines for America has said the changes might cause disruptions.

The U.S. announced the new rules in June to end the government's restrictions on carry-on electronic devices on planes coming from 10 airports in eight countries in the Middle East and North Africa in response to unspecified security threats.

Those restrictions were lifted in July but the Trump administration said it could reimpose measures on a case by case basis if airlines and airports did not boost security.

European and U.S. officials told Reuters at the time that airlines had 120 days to comply with the measures, including increased passenger screening. The 120-day deadline is Thursday. Airlines had until late July to expand explosive trace detection testing.

Lufthansa Group said on Tuesday the measures would be in place by Thursday and travelers could face short interviews at check-in or at the gate. Economy passengers on Lufthansa's Swiss airline have been asked to check in at least 90 minutes before departure.

Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd said it would suspend in-town check-in and self bag-drop services for passengers booked on direct flights to the United States. The airline said it would suspend in-town check-in and self bag-drop services for passengers booked on direct flights to the United States. The airline said passengers would also have short security interviews and it has advised travelers to arrive three hours before departure.

U.S. authorities in June also increased security around aircraft and in passenger areas, and other places where travelers can be cleared by U.S. officials before they depart.

Read more at:
//economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/61209178.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

 

[Guest]

An update:

The Associated Press

PUBLISHED: October 25, 2017 at 7:09 am | UPDATED: October 25, 2017 at 7:44

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Five global long-haul airlines will begin new security interviews of all passengers on U.S.-bound flights starting Thursday at the request of American officials, the companies said Wednesday.

Long-haul carriers Air France, Cathay Pacific, EgyptAir, Emirates and Lufthansa all said they’d start the screenings.

However, the airlines offered different descriptions of how the interviews would take place, ranging from another form a traveler would have to fill out to actually being questioned by an airline employee.

It wasn’t immediately clear if other global airlines would be affected, though the Trump administration previously rolled out a laptop ban and travel bans that have thrown the international travel industry into disarray.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment. However, it comes at the end of a 120-day deadline for airlines to meet new U.S. regulations following the ban on laptops in airplane cabins of some Mideast airlines being lifted.

Air France said it will begin new security interviews on Thursday at Paris Orly Airport and a week later, on Nov. 2, at Charles de Gaulle Airport. It said the extra screening will take the form of a questionnaire handed over to “100 percent” of passengers.

Emirates said in a statement it would begin doing “pre-screening interviews” at its check-in counters for passengers flying out of Dubai and at boarding gates for transit and transfer fliers. It urged those flying through Dubai International Airport, its headquarters, to allow extra time to check into flights and board.

“These measures will work in complement with the current additional screening measures conducted at the boarding gate,” it said.

Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. said on its website that it had suspended self-drop baggage services and that passengers heading to the U.S. “will be subject to a short security interview” when checking their luggage. Those without bags would have a similar interview at their gates.

EgyptAir said in a statement the new measures include more detailed searches of passengers and their luggage and interviews. The strict procedures will extend to unauthorized agricultural or veterinary products.

Germany’s Lufthansa Group said the new rules came from the U.S. Transportation Security Administration, which is under Homeland Security.

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“In addition to the controls of electronic devices already introduced, travelers to the U.S.A. might now also face short interviews at check-in, document check or (their) gate,” Lufthansa said in a statement.

Lufthansa Group includes Germany’s largest carrier, Lufthansa, as well as Austrian Airlines, Swiss, Eurowings and several other airlines.

The International Air Transport Association, which represents 275 airlines, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This is the latest decision by President Donald Trump’s administration affecting global travel.

In March, U.S. officials instituted the ban on laptops in airplane cabins across 10 Middle East cities over concerns Islamic State fighters and other extremists could hide bombs inside of them. That ban was lifted after those airlines began using devices like CT scanners to examine electronics just before passengers board airplanes heading to the United States. Some increasingly swab passengers to test for explosives.

That laptop ban, as well as travel bans affecting predominantly Muslim countries, have hurt Mideast airlines. Emirates, the region’s biggest, said it slashed 20 percent of its flights to America in the wake of the restrictions.

It wasn’t immediately clear if other Mideast airlines were affected by the new rules.

Abu Dhabi-based Etihad said its operations “were normal” without elaborating, while Doha-based Qatar Airways did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

___