ALERT: U.S. Laptop Ban Removed (July 20, 2017)

July 20, 2017

Today, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) removed the “electronics ban” for all flights to the United States.

According to the Los Angeles Times:

New security measures added at international airports now allow laptop computers, tablets and other large electronic devices in the cabins of flights to the United States, the Department of Homeland Security announced Thursday.

The federal agency that oversees airline security declined to detail the new security measures but confirmed that the precautions came in response to threats that terrorists were working on ways to hide explosives in laptops or other electronic devices.

“This quick and decisive action taken by airlines, nations and stakeholders are a testament to our shared commitment to raising the bar on global aviation security,” Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly said in a statement.

… as of Thursday morning, the Homeland Security Department announced, all 180 airlines and 280-plus airports with direct flights to the U.S. have adopted enhanced security measures instead of having to implement a laptop ban.

NPR is reporting:

The United States has ended the ban on large electronics in the cabins of airlines that it announced in March.

King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, was the last airport to be taken off the Department of Homeland Security’s ban list, which originally affected ten airports and nine airlines, mostly Middle Eastern carriers.

DHS Spokesman David Lapan tweeted Wednesday evening that the restrictions on large electronics had been lifted. “With enhanced security measures in place, all restrictions on large PEDs announced in March for 10 airports/9 airlines have been lifted,” he wrote.

… the U.S. has issued a new directive to airlines on additional security measures they must take, including increased security and screening protocols, affecting direct flights to the U.S. from about 280 airports around the world.

Lapan, the DHS spokesman, tweeted Thursday that “all 180 airlines” have implemented the first phase of the security measures.

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