Passengers travelling on certain US-bound foreign airline flights will have to check electronic devices larger than a cell phone once US authorities formalize a new ban in response to an unspecified terrorism threat, US officials said Monday. The new rule is expected to be announced Tuesday by the Department of Homeland Security, the officials said, adding that it had been under consideration since the US government learned of a threat several weeks ago. A source said the rule would cover around eight to 10 foreign airlines. A separate government official confirmed an Associated Press report that the ban will affect 10 airports in eight countries in the Middle East and North Africa. Reuters reported earlier the ban would include airlines based in Jordan and Saudi Arabia. The officials did not name the other countries. No American carriers were affected by the ban, the officials said. Passengers would be allowed to carry in their checked luggage larger devices like tablets, portable DVD players, laptops and cameras. CNN, citing an unnamed US official, said the ban on electronics on certain airlines is related to al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and that some information came from a recent US special forces raid in Yemen. Royal Jordanian Airlines said in a tweet on Monday that US-bound passengers would be barred from carrying most electronic devices aboard aircraft starting Tuesday at the request of US officials, including those that transit through Canada. Passengers can still carry cell phones and approved medical devices.<br/>
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Coming off another highly profitable year in 2016, US airlines expect traffic this spring to increase 4% over last year, and they are adding seats to handle the crush. The trade group Airlines for America forecast Monday that a record 145m US passengers will fly between March 1 and April 30. The group's chief economist said traffic will rise because airfares fell over the last two years while economic indicators such as household wealth and job creation are rising. There are signs, however, that the run of lower airfares — made possible by cheaper jet fuel — is ending. American Airlines expects a key revenue per seat figure to rise between 1.5 and 3.5% in the first quarter after falling throughout 2015 and 2016, and other carriers are close behind. For the airlines, it looks like the good times will keep rolling. Last year, US airlines carried a record 823m passengers and earned $22.3b in pretax income, down just $1b from the stellar results in 2015. Pretax profit margins topped 14% in both 2015 and 2016. That's the closest the industry has ever been to the US corporate average — 15.8% last year — according to their trade group. As profits have recovered from the 2008-2009 financial crisis, US airlines have paid down $63b in debt, bought hundreds of planes, added the equivalent of nearly 33,000 full-time employees, and raised wages.<br/>
US airlines are “concerned” about potential TSA funding decreases, and oppose any increase to the airline passenger security fee to fill agency budget gaps, an Airlines for America (A4A) official said. Speaking to reporters on a March 20 conference call, A4A SVP-legislative and regulatory policy Sharon Pinkerton said the spring 2016 “meltdown” at US airport security checkpoints, leading to extremely long queues, should give the Trump administration pause before reducing TSA funding levels. In a budget blueprint released last week, US President Donald Trump suggested that TSA should focus its resources on airport passenger screening checkpoints, and proposed that 75% of the agency’s aviation security budget should be funded by the airline passenger security fee imposed after 9/11. Funds from the security fee—which is $5.60 per flight segment and capped at $11.20 per roundtrip ticket—covered about 37% of TSA’s aviation security costs in the US government’s fiscal year 2016. Even if revenue from the fee diverted to federal deficit reduction (about $1.3 billion annually) were returned to TSA, the fee revenue would still only cover about 62% of TSA’s aviation security budget. That suggests a significant fee raise would be necessary to meet Trump’s 75% target. “The last time the fee was increased [in 2013 from $2.50 to $5.60 per flight segment], part of that [additional] fee revenue went to [general federal government] deficit reduction,” Pinkerton said. “Job number one for Congress and the administration is to change that and bring that money back to TSA.”<br/>
The EC wants to scrap restrictions placed on EU airlines leasing planes and crew from US carriers, to resolve a long-standing dispute between the two sides. The leasing of crewed planes from another airline - known as wet-leasing - is a common practice in the industry and the 10-year-old EU-US Open Skies aviation services agreement envisaged a liberal regime for wet leasing. But a dispute arose after the EU separately in 2008 imposed a seven-month duration limit, renewable once, on European airlines wet-leasing from non-EU carriers. The US retaliated by imposing similar duration limits on EU carriers wet-leasing from other EU carriers on their routes to and from the US, making it hard for European airlines to plan routes as they would not know if the wet-leased crews and planes would have permission to fly. The Commission is now seeking a mandate from EU member states to negotiate an unrestricted wet-leasing agreement with the United States - the first such agreement the EU would have - to resolve the impasse, but that has raised fears among some critics that airlines could use wet-leasing as a way to operate regular services with cheaper crews. But supporters say this is unlikely to happen as pay levels are similar on both sides of the Atlantic and while Germany has opposed a liberalized wet-lease regime with the United States, most other member states are in favor.<br/>
Ground staff have blown the whistle on what really goes on behind the scenes at Australia's busiest airport - and it isn't pretty. Staff say they are forced to camp beside baggage carousels, sleep inside luggage containers among rat droppings and rubbish and hang around inside Sydney Airport for up to 15 hours a day in order to work split shifts for paltry pay, the ABC reports. Workers from ground handling contractor Aerocare have also told of a frightening near-miss by sleep-deprived staff which saw a fully loaded Tiger Air passenger jet in Brisbane preparing for takeoff with a cargo door left wide open by mistake. Aerocare is contracted to major airlines to provide ground support at Sydney airport, loading bags, passengers and performing safety checks. "It's filthy it's cold its dark its just absolutely horrible," Aerocare truck driver George Orsaris told ABC's 730 program. "It's definitely not conditions that people in this day an age, especially in Australia, (expect) are going on here. Its unthinkable." Leaked photos show makeshift beds underneath passenger terminals, where staff say they camp out between shifts because they can't afford to go home. "They can't afford the fuel or the tolls," Transport Workers Union spokesman Tony Sheldon said, claiming workers were earning as little as $1500 a month. "This is a terrible indictment on the Australian workforce."<br/>
Finnish aviation services company Airpro and the union representing ground service workers have agreed a deal to settle their pay dispute. Finland’s National Conciliator Minna Helle chaired talks over the weekend and into Monday to resolve the dispute over pay and conditions between the the IAU Finnish Aviation Union and Airpro. The deal, which has to be approved by both sides, will avert further strikes by IAU members at Helsinki and Oulu airports. The next strike was scheduled for Wednesday, but is not expected to go ahead. Terms of the agreement will not be disclosed publicly before the two sides approve the deal, the conciliation service said.<br/>
Embraer’s fourth E190-E2 test aircraft flew for the first time March 17, performing an initial two-hour mission. The aircraft, which flew from Embraer’s São José dos Campos facility, joins three other E190-E2s that have accumulated more than 650 flight hours to date. The first prototype of the E190-E2 completed its maiden flight May 23, 2016, months ahead of schedule, and was joined by a second prototype on July 8. The third aircraft took to the skies Aug. 27. Announcing the maiden flight, Embraer said the fourth test prototype will be used for interior tests, including cabin evacuation, environmental comfort and internal noise. “Embraer has already frozen the aerodynamic configuration and concluded many tests such as flying qualities assessment, short field takeoff and landing, climb performance, inflight thrust determination, landing gear stability and other systems tests. Shortly we will do high speed flying qualities, flutter, natural ice and cold soak tests,” Embraer Commercial Aviation COO Luís Carlos Affonso said.<br/>