A Guide To The US Laptop Flight Ban

A laptop ban will soon be applied to flights from specific countries from the Middle East. This is not expected to be as hot a topic as other recent travel restrictions imposed by the United States, but it will still cause some hassle especially for frequent flyers and business travelers. In order to deal with this, it might help to get the basics.

For those entering the US via a flight from any of the eight Muslim majority countries (Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates), , they will no longer be allowed to take any device bigger than a mobile phone into the aircraft cabin. If they are bringing any bigger electronic gadgets, they will have to include these into their checked luggage. The ban includes laptops, tablet devices, e-readers and Kindles, big cameras, and essentially any electronic device larger than a standard smartphone.

The bad news is that the ban appears to apply also to a few phablet models, specifically those devices with dimensions of 16 centimeters by 9.3 centimeters or larger. Owners of phablets such as Apple’s iPhone 7 Plus, Google’s Pixel XL, and Samsung’s Galaxy S7 should be okay, but the same can not be said for those who have HTC’s U Ultra.

According to the Department of Homeland Security, the ban will go into effect immediately. Moreover, the ban will apply to the following ten airports in the eight countries mentioned earlier:

• Cairo International, Egypt

• Queen Alia International, Jordan

• Kuwait International, Kuwait

• Mohammed V International, Morocco

• Doha International, Qatar

• King Abudlaziz International, Saudi Arabia

• King Khalid International, Saudi Arabia

• Ataturk International, Turkey

• Dubai International, United Arab Emirates

• Abu Dhabi International, United Arab Emirates

Additionally, airlines from these eight countries from the Middle East will have to comply with the new policy. These airlines are:

• Royal Jordanian

• Egypt Air

• Turkish Airlines

• Saudi Arabian Airlines

• Kuwait Airways

• Royal Air Maroc

• Qatar Airways

• Emirates

• Etihad

The United Kingdom is similarly imposing a device from selected flights from the Middle East. The ban is on laptops, tablet devices, and bigger electronic devices, which will no longer be allowed inside the aircraft cabin of any flight bound for the UK from the following countries:

• Egypt

• Jordan

• Lebanon

• Saudi Arabia

• Tunisia

• Turkey

As mentioned earlier, both the US and the UK device bans are effective immediately, and it looks like there is no end in sight for now.