Passengers warned not to take laptops aboard cabin

Security: New rules on aeroplane hand baggage to begin this weekend

The UK’s cabin baggage ban on laptops and tablets must be implemented by Saturday, the Department for Transport (DfT) said.

It was announced on Tuesday that passengers will no longer be able to carry large electronic devices on inbound flights from Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Tunisia and Saudi Arabia.

The ban covers devices larger than a typical smartphone and means that all bigger gadgets, including Kindles and other e-readers, will have to go in the luggage holds of aircraft.

A DfT spokeswoman said airlines have been told to implement the rules “over the coming days and no later than March 25”.

She added that passengers “should go to the airport with the expectation that the measures are already in effect”.

Low-cost airline easyJet said it introduced the new regime on its flights from Turkey and Egypt to the UK on Wednesday.

Transport Secretary Chris Grayling told MPs in the Commons that the UK faces a “constantly evolving threat from terrorism and must respond accordingly”.

Matthew Finn, managing director of aviation security consultancy firm Augmentiq, questioned why the rules only apply to some flights.

He said: “If there is indeed reliable intelligence of a credible threat that an improvised explosive device can be concealed within a consumer electronic device, then the question has to be how do we mitigate that risk for all aircraft leaving all destinations right across the board?”

The ban will theoretically stop a terrorist on an affected flight from physically triggering a bomb concealed in a laptop and would ensure any explosion takes place in the hold, away from other passengers.

Mr Finn suggested the regulations were not properly considered.

“Just banning a laptop from the cabin makes little sense if it’s still available in the hold and could be detonated remotely using any manner of triggering device,” he said.

The restriction covers any electronic device measuring 16cm (6.3in) by 9.3cm (3.7in) by 1.5cm (0.6in).

This includes laptops, ereaders and tablets, as well as some gaming systems and large smartphones.

“Just banning a laptop from the cabin makes little sense”

FORBIDDEN: Large devices such as laptops are to be banned from the cabin