The US bans electronic devices on the flight. US imposed the ban on certain flights from particular African and Middle Eastern countries coming into the United States. All the passengers from these countries flying into the US will require passengers to check in their electronic devices instead of hand carrying them.
US Bans Electronic Devices including Tabs
The ban is not just limited to the use of smartphones onboard. The new ban, once implemented, will require passengers to check in devices even larger than smartphones.
Security is the prime reason cited behind why the US bans electronic devices on a flight from particular countries into the United States. The passengers from the countries specified will require screening of passengers. This particular ban will specifically include passengers onboarding non-stop flights to the United States.
The US aviation authorities believe that if the passengers onboard flight to the US from airports with better security arrangements, it would help reduce the terrorism-related threats.
The Ban Will Help Overcome AQAP Threat
The officials the US bans electronic devices because of the Al Qaeda in the Arabia Peninsula. The intelligence community is continuously following threats from this region. AQAP is trying to come up with destruction causing weapons which can go undetected because of no use of metal parts.
The US intelligence community is also increasingly concerned about terrorists launching attacks using electronic devices.
Trump Administration’s Change in Stance Towards Muslim World
Ever since Donald Trump became the US President, the country’s establishment has followed a strong anti-Muslim rhetoric.
The recent ban on Muslim-majority countries traveling into the United States spoke volumes about how Donald Trump perceived the threat. However, the US judicial actively responded to the Executive Order by Trump. The Trump Administration came up with a revised order to make sure it was implemented on to several Muslim-majority countries, dropping Iraq because of the country’s strong lobbying in the US.
Airlines Reaction to the US Ban on Electronic Devices
Saudi Airlines
Saudi Airlines clarified to its customers that ban on electronic devices by the US would include tablets, laptops, and Kindles.
Royal Jordanian Airlines
The Royal Jordanian Airlines announced the banning of electronic devices on a flight while responding to the US ban.
Turkish Airlines
The Turkish Airlines has announced that there is no restriction on US bound passengers to carry larger electronic devices in cabin luggage. The results of efforts by the US to tighten the noose on terrorists remain uncertain. However, these new measures will increase an anti-American sentiment in the countries impacted by the ban. This new order is discriminatory in nature, only including certain parts of the world while excluding many others.
