Gulf airlines to ‘loan’ laptops, tablets to US-bound travellers
dubai — In an effort to “mitigate the inconvenience” of the recent American ban on electronic devices on board US-bound flights, Emirates Airline has begun letting first and business class passengers borrow tablets to allow them to continue working during their flight.
Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Airways, for its part, has also said it would offer free WiFi and tablet computers to first and business class passengers on US-bound flights, while Qatar Airways is now offering laptops to business class passengers.
The new services are in response to the US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) directive which requires all passengers travelling on non-stop flights to the US from Dubai to check-in their laptops, tablets, and other personal electronic devices larger than a smart phone.
In response, Emirates premium customers will be offered Microsoft Surface tablets equipped with Microsoft Office 2016, and will be able to download their work on to a USB which can be brought on board and plugged into the devices. The service is complimentary and will be available on all nonstop flights from Dubai to Emirates’ US destinations.
For customers who prefer to stow away their devices for the duration of the flight, on March 25 — when the TSA rules took effect — Emirates had introduced a laptop and tablet handling service for US-bound customers. This service allows customers to retain and utilise their personal devices until just before they board their US-bound flights. Passengers must then declare and hand over their laptops, tablets, and other banned electronic devices to security staff at the boarding gate, who will pack and tag each device to be stored in the aircraft hold and returned to the customer at their US destination.
Since the service has been offered, almost 8,000 passengers have used the laptop and tablet handling service on the airline’s 112 weekly non-stop flights to the US.
These two new services by Emirates give customers travelling to the US several options, such as: packing their electronic devices into their check-in baggage at their point of departure; the opportunity to use their laptops and tablet on their first leg of their journeys and during transit in Dubai, up to the moment they board their US-bound flight; and for premium customers the choice to continue working on loaned devices on board.
The TSA directive does not apply to Emirates’ US-bound flights via Milan (EK205) and Athens (EK209). It also does not impact flights departing from the US, or Emirates’ flights to any other destination.
reporters@khaleejtimes.com