Emirates lifts ban on laptops

EMIRATES, the world’s biggest long-haul airline, said that measures barring laptops from the cabins of aircraft departing its Dubai base for the US have been lifted, leaving Qatar Airways as the only major carrier still affected by the ban. The moratorium which was imposed in March, has been removed yesterday following work with local authorities and regulators on implementing the “heightened security measures and protocols” that had been required by the US Department of Homeland Security, Emirates said. Dubai becomes the third major hub to normalise access to personal devices on US-bound flights. Istanbul, home base to Turkish Airlines, also declared itself free of the ban yesterday, after saying on Monday that the restrictions would be dropped, while Etihad Airways’ hub Abu Dhabi secured exemption last Sunday, aided by the presence of a US “pre-clearance” border post there. – Bloomberg