For some fliers, electronics ban makes for a bumpy ride
Although it went into effect only Saturday, a ban on electronic devices like laptops and tablets on certain overseas flights bound for the United States and Britain has already prompted business travellers to rethink their travel plans. For travlers who frequently cross through the Middle East and North Africa, the choices put them between a rock and a hard place: They can check their devices and lose a day or more of productive work, as well as run the risk of damage or theft, or trade a nonstop flight on a high-end Persian Gulf carrier for connecting flights on one of the major American or European airlines, where amenities and leg room are likely to be skimpier. The gulf carriers are scrambling to accommodate their most lucrative customers, but there is only so much they can do. They cannot, for example, accommodate travellers who work at companies that prohibit checking electronic devices for security reasons. “There are a lot of policies out there that basically say you can’t be separated from your laptop,” said Greeley Koch, executive director at the Association of Corporate Travel Executives. Companies that deal with proprietary or sensitive data, including government contractors, often require that company devices remain with the employee at all times. These travellers will have to forgo the gulf airlines that fly directly to the US and spend more time making connections and waiting out layovers in European cities. “We’re going to see people shifting routes to get to other carriers,” said Brian Jenkins, an aviation security expert at the RAND Corporation. Airlines like Emirates, Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways, which in recent years have come to dominate parts of the long-haul market, stand to lose market share, especially among high-paying business travellers unwilling or unable to fly halfway around the world without their electronic devices. Before the bans on devices took effect, some gulf carriers had taken steps to try to mitigate any falloff in business travel bookings. Emirates, Etihad Airways and Turkish Airlines established procedures allowing travellers to check laptops and tablets at the gate.<br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2017-03-28/general/for-some-fliers-electronics-ban-makes-for-a-bumpy-ride
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/logo.png
For some fliers, electronics ban makes for a bumpy ride
Although it went into effect only Saturday, a ban on electronic devices like laptops and tablets on certain overseas flights bound for the United States and Britain has already prompted business travellers to rethink their travel plans. For travlers who frequently cross through the Middle East and North Africa, the choices put them between a rock and a hard place: They can check their devices and lose a day or more of productive work, as well as run the risk of damage or theft, or trade a nonstop flight on a high-end Persian Gulf carrier for connecting flights on one of the major American or European airlines, where amenities and leg room are likely to be skimpier. The gulf carriers are scrambling to accommodate their most lucrative customers, but there is only so much they can do. They cannot, for example, accommodate travellers who work at companies that prohibit checking electronic devices for security reasons. “There are a lot of policies out there that basically say you can’t be separated from your laptop,” said Greeley Koch, executive director at the Association of Corporate Travel Executives. Companies that deal with proprietary or sensitive data, including government contractors, often require that company devices remain with the employee at all times. These travellers will have to forgo the gulf airlines that fly directly to the US and spend more time making connections and waiting out layovers in European cities. “We’re going to see people shifting routes to get to other carriers,” said Brian Jenkins, an aviation security expert at the RAND Corporation. Airlines like Emirates, Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways, which in recent years have come to dominate parts of the long-haul market, stand to lose market share, especially among high-paying business travellers unwilling or unable to fly halfway around the world without their electronic devices. Before the bans on devices took effect, some gulf carriers had taken steps to try to mitigate any falloff in business travel bookings. Emirates, Etihad Airways and Turkish Airlines established procedures allowing travellers to check laptops and tablets at the gate.<br/>
