On my last cross country flight, between watching downloaded movies on my iPad and searching for blog ideas on my laptop, I slapped on Growlr app on the iPhone to see what I could see. The funny thing is the app worked and there was one good chat out of it. Technology is a wonderful thing. After today's announcement from the US Dept. of Homeland Security, it makes me wonder, are the days of using your laptop, iPad, iPhone, or any hand held electronic device on a plane numbered?
The US Department of Homeland Security is rolling out a ban on carrying electronics in passenger cabins on some flights to and from the US from several countries in the Middle East.
DHS said the ban is for “security precautions,” an official for a related government agency told Quartz. Saudia Airlines, the national carrier of Saudi Arabia, tweeted Monday evening that portable computers, Kindles, and iPads would not be allowed in the cabin on flights into the US.
Royal Jordanian airlines told passengers today on Twitter that it will begin prohibiting electronic devices in the passenger cabin, with the exception of medical devices and mobile phones, on all flights to and from the United States.
Hours after it first tweeted the information, however, the tweet was deleted.
The ban Royal Jordanian and Saudia Airlines referenced appears to be part of a larger crackdown by US authorities on electronics devices on flights coming from several countries.
Abdulrahman H. Alfahad, who appears to be an executive at Saudia Airlines based on his other social media accounts, posted on a personal twitter account that a directive was given for passengers on flights originating from 13 countries. – qz.com
Hmmm, are there rumblings overseas about safety? Is there something being whispered that we should know? Will the ban affect your travel plans?
Qatar, Etihad, and Emirates did not immediately respond to inquiries about any restrictions to electronics in their cabins on certain or all flights. United and Delta each said they had nothing to share at this time, while American Airlines said “We don’t anticipate any changes for flights operated by American Airlines.”
The Royal Jordanian tweet specifically mentions laptops, cameras, DVD players, and gaming devices as banned at the request of “the concerned US departments.” The edict was distributed by the US Transportation Safety Administration on Monday, with immediate effect, the Guardian reported. The TSA referred all questions to the DHS. – qz.com
Remember the whole ban on hover boards and then the exploding Samsung phones? Those bans had to do with exploding lithium batteries. Batteries that are also in the laptops, hand helds, etc and are banned from being in checked baggage. So if this ban mentioned above is enforced, it would conflict with current baggage rules that state lithium batteries are not allowed to be checked due to their risk of catching fire. The rule is that passengers need to carry these items in the cabin for if they do catch fire there, they can be extinguished.
Could you travel without your laptop / iPod / or hand held?
h/t: qz.com