Law & Disorder —
Report: Ban on laptops in planes may expand to Europe
Electronics larger than cell phones might be barred on US-bound flights.
Joe Mullin - 5/10/2017, 4:58 PM
Kids watch a laptop screen at Pearson International airport, in Toronto, Canada.
Giordano Ciampini/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
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The Department of Homeland Security is considering expanding its ban on electronic devices on US-bound flights from certain airports, according to a
report by CBS News.
In March, the DHS
banned on all devices bigger than a cell phone on US-bound flights from 10 airports located in Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Kuwait, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. Terrorist groups were targeting commercial planes with "innovative methods" including "smuggling explosive devices in various consumer items," the DHS said at the time.
Further Reading
TSA explains why it won’t allow electronics on some USA-bound flights [Updated]
The United Kingdom put into place a similar set of rules, banning larger-than-cell-phone electronics on UK-bound flights from all airports in six countries: Egypt, Tunisia, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey. The CBS report cites unnamed sources close to the DHS, who say the ban on larger devices could be expanded to flights departing for the US from Europe and perhaps the UK. Government officials "have been meeting with US airlines on a nearly weekly basis," and a decision could come within the next few weeks.
Neither the DHS nor the Transportation Security Administration would confirm the report.
The ban applies to tablets, laptops, e-readers, cameras, and portable DVD players, among other electronics. Cell phones and medical devices are exempt from the ban.