Trump's laptop ban could lead to "runaway fires" in baggage hold: Expert

The cabin baggage ban on laptops and tablets on some direct flights to both the US and UK has been questioned over its fire safety by one airline analyst. In the United States, the ban affects planes coming from airports in Egypt, Turkey, Kuwait City, Qatar, Morocco Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. John Strickland, an aviation expert, and director at JLS Consulting, said Thursday that there was a real danger to loading a plane's hold with lithium battery items. "If these batteries are damaged they could have this thermal runaway fire and that itself is a security challenge of a different kind that the airlines would have to wrestle with," he said. Last year the UN aviation agency blocked cargo shipments of lithium-ion batteries, used in many such electronic devices, from being carried in the cargo holds on passenger planes. Strickland added the fact that the EU has not followed suit, raised questions over the ban's efficacy. "Why are we not getting a follow through in Europe? Because there are other itineraries that customers can follow. "And if they still wish to achieve a terrorist aim they can do it," he said. The International Air Transport Association (IATA), which represents most of the world's major airlines, hinted the electronics ban may not have been thought through. "Safety and security are the top priority of everyone involved in aviation," it said Tuesday. "Airlines comply with government requirements and they can do this most effectively when measures are well coordinated."<br/>