New security threat ?

[Gilles Hudicourt]

http://www.foxnews.com/travel/2017/03/2 ... ggage.html

https://www.flightglobal.com/news/artic ... fl-435371/

[confusedalot]

It's all over the mainstream media.

Ultra secret weapon or unhealthy paranoia? Time will tell.

[Gilles Hudicourt]

This has Trumps' fingerprints all over it and smells not only protectionism but also Muslim ban, which I hope the US airlines and Unions will not applaud, even if they benefit.

It bars passengers from Amman, Cairo, Istanbul, Jeddah, Riyadh, Kuwait City, Casablanca, Doha, Dubai and Abu Dhabi from carrying any electronics on board but only if they travel on a non-US airline.

But the security screening in those airports are the same, regardless of which airline one travels on. The airline is not responsible for passenger screening, the local airport authority is. So how is travelling from Doha to JFK with a laptop any safer when travelling on AA rather than on Qatar Airways ?

Does anyone know of a business traveler who will put his laptop or tablet in the checked baggage ? I never do. They are instantly detected by the same security devices that are meant to detect threats and often those manning the machines are in contact with minimum salary employees in the baggage handling areas.

Edit: Plus this new measure contradicts the rules that allow lithium batteries, but only if they are carried in the cabin: So passengers will face a catch 22 situation: their device contains a lithium battery that can only travel in the cabin but that in turn violates the new US directive.

With a removable battery, the battery can travel in cabin and the device in the hold, but more and more devices have fixed batteries.....

If the US justice system still works, this will be struck down in court. Like Trump's Muslim ban......


EDIT: I have read a new version that claims the ban affects ANY airline doing a direct flight from the designated airports to the US, not just foreign airlines as previously reported. We'll have to wait for the dust to settle to get the full story.

[Gilles Hudicourt]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/mon ... a8f825959d

As I was saying......

[Gilles Hudicourt]

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-39343971

[FADEC]

PAssing through Frankfurt Airport in December, I was subjected to an unusually thorough screening. They were most interested in all electronics, including power supplies and cables.

I was advised that my observation was correct; there was some intelligence of some kind about these devices; thus the extra scrutiny.

I was travelling from Africa, from a known secure airport. All travellers were getting the same unusual attention.

[Gilles Hudicourt]

http://globalnews.ca/news/3324422/elect ... m=Facebook

[confusedalot]

Seems to be something to it. Oh boy..........

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daallo_Ai ... Flight_159

[complexintentions]

This has Trumps' fingerprints all over it and smells not only protectionism but also Muslim ban, which I hope the US airlines and Unions will not applaud, even if they benefit.

Yes, yes, we know. Trump = bad, Muslims = victims, trying to contain terrorists = bigotry.

Well, except it's nothing to do with Trump, and the ban applies to all airlines - and DOH-JFK is operated by Qatar, by the way (codeshare with AA). The Somalian laptop bombing was carried out by Abdullahi Abdisalam Borleh, responsibility was claimed by Islamic terrorist group al-Shabab, and 10 Mogadishu airport employees, whom I feel strangely confident would identify as adherents of the Religion of Peace, were convicted in the plot. But of course it is Islamaphobic to point this out, and no doubt will soon be a hate crime to do so. Oh, Canada.

But carry on with the popular liberal narrative until something happens closer to home. Like, say, London today.

I wonder with which cause or religious extremists today's attack will be found to be associated with? I will wait for the official version but I have a pretty good guess. It's just all so predictable it's almost boring, if it wasn't so terribly sad.

Last 30 Days of Attacks

[chaster]

This has Trumps' fingerprints all over it and smells not only protectionism but also Muslim ban, which I hope the US airlines and Unions will not applaud, even if they benefit.

It bars passengers from Amman, Cairo, Istanbul, Jeddah, Riyadh, Kuwait City, Casablanca, Doha, Dubai and Abu Dhabi from carrying any electronics on board but only if they travel on a non-US airline.

But the security screening in those airports are the same, regardless of which airline one travels on. The airline is not responsible for passenger screening, the local airport authority is. So how is travelling from Doha to JFK with a laptop any safer when travelling on AA rather than on Qatar Airways ?

Does anyone know of a business traveler who will put his laptop or tablet in the checked baggage ? I never do. They are instantly detected by the same security devices that are meant to detect threats and often those manning the machines are in contact with minimum salary employees in the baggage handling areas.

Edit: Plus this new measure contradicts the rules that allow lithium batteries, but only if they are carried in the cabin: So passengers will face a catch 22 situation: their device contains a lithium battery that can only travel in the cabin but that in turn violates the new US directive.

With a removable battery, the battery can travel in cabin and the device in the hold, but more and more devices have fixed batteries.....

If the US justice system still works, this will be struck down in court. Like Trump's Muslim ban......


EDIT: I have read a new version that claims the ban affects ANY airline doing a direct flight from the designated airports to the US, not just foreign airlines as previously reported. We'll have to wait for the dust to settle to get the full story.

Come on Gilles give your head a shake! I'm not a big Donald fan but if you or anyone thinks these Arseholes are not plotting another attack on aviation your living in La La land. Remember back post 911 that the company that both you and I work for was on its back!!! Whatever it takes to prevent another attack I say carry on! Hate to say it but we are at War people ! No room for bleeding hearts anymore!! C

[Gilles Hudicourt]

Abu Dhabi and Dubai probably have two of the best screening facilities in the World. Abu Dhabi even has a US CBP Pre-Clearance facility and one is planned for Dubai as well.

The claimed threat is that they have intelligence that some terrorists are planning to replace the batteries with explosive devices. How is security increased by having these devices travel in the hold rather than in the cabin ?

Great Britain implemented a similar ban, but decided to exclude Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Doha, Casablanca and Kuwait City but added Tunisia and Lebanon instead. After reading the same intelligence......
Unlike the US ban, which does not affect a single US airline (just a coincidence of course), the UK ban affects several British Airlines as well.

But I fully agree that this is a great opportunity for North American airlines. If Canada were to join in this electronic device ban in the cabin, StarAlliance, BA and Air France/KLM could regain part of their lost market shares. Like in the good old days, London, Frankfurt, Amsterdam and Paris will could once again become the major hubs for all travels to Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa, India, South-East Asia and Australia from the East coast, since this ban will, again by pure coincidence, cut the grass from under the likes of Turkish, Ethiad, Emirates and Qatar.

Hey, Air Canada, Lufthansa, BA and Air France/KLM may even get a few good deals on used A380s, B777 and B787s in the aftermath of all this.

It's a security issue......

I agree that the likes of Ethiad, Emirates and Qatar represent an existential threats to North American Airlines and that something has to be done. Anyone who has recently traveled business on both a North American Airlines and one of the ME3 knows why. But TRUMPING them is not the way to do it in my view.

[confusedalot]

Pretty sure the bad guys thought about sticking ipads and laptops into checked baggage. Call me naïve, but if a bunch of wrongdoers can figure out how to make exploding batteries, I kinda think that they have the intellectual ability to look at all avenues to get their wares into an airplane.....

There is a psychological warfare element to all of this sadly.

I don't buy the commercial manipulation argument.

[av8ts]

I think America may be expending its money and efforts to save lives in the wrong place. But it sure makes good PR for white Christians

[trey kule]

I can not speak for Europe, but where I fly the US airlines have secondary screening just before boarding.

Ait travel has changed dramatically since 911. A relatively small group is challinging our freedom and making us all afraid. It does seem to be working.

We are trying to defeat them with technology. And not necessarily proactively.

There will be new and different threats in the future

[Commonwealth]

Is terrorism about what they do to us, or what they can make us do to ourselves?

[Eric Janson]

Abu Dhabi and Dubai probably have two of the best screening facilities in the World.

Really Gilles?

I travel in and out of Dubai several times a month and I certainly wouldn't describe their screening that way.

[Gilles Hudicourt]

http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/business/em ... -1.4075512

As intended.
Next: B-787 and B-777 orders will be reduced.

[Eric Janson]

The bottom has fallen out of the Emirates business plan - they are in trouble.

They were already planning service reductions. This just gives them a convenient excuse.

If you spend any time in the region you will realise everything is about "appearance" - the embarrassing truth will never be made public.

Look at the handling of EK521 last year as an example.