Airlines step up security measures
I have nothing against the implementation of new directives, particularly if it concerns safety of passengers,” said Dubai resident Dr Angelo Santos.
“All it takes is punctuality to attend to this pre-screening requirements, and obedience to new rules and regulations. This will not be a problem to all responsible travellers and tourists,” added Santos.
A report by Associated Press on Wednesday noted that EgyptAir, Cathay Pacific Airways, Air France and Lufthansa are also implementing stricter procedures at the airports.
EgyptAir said new measures starting today include interviews and more detailed searches of passengers and their luggage. Agricultural and veterinary products will also be tightly screened.
Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific Airways announced on its website on Wednesday that it had suspended self-drop baggage services and that passengers heading to the US “will be subject to a short security interview”.
Those without bags would have a similar interview at their gates, AP reported Cathay Pacific as saying. Air France said that the new security interviews of passengers will also start at Paris Orly Airport today and at Charles de Gaulle Airport on November 2. Air France added that the extra screening will take the form of a questionnaire handed over to all its US-bound passengers.
Lufthansa also said the new measures would be in place today and passengers could face short interviews at check-in counters or at the gate.
AP noted that “it wasn’t immediately clear if other global airlines would be affected, though the Trump administration previously rolled out a laptop ban and travel bans that have thrown global airlines into disarray”.
Royal Jordanian, which operates direct flights from Amman to New York, Chicago and Detroit, also confirmed that it will implement new security procedures on USbound flights in mid-January.
An AP report quoted Basel Kilani, a spokesman for Royal Jordanian, as saying that the national carrier had asked to delay the implementation of the measures until January, and that the request was granted.
Meanwhile, Reuters reported that the new security measures will affect around 325,000 airline passengers on about 2,000 USbound commercial flights on 180 airlines from 280 airports in 105 countries.
US trade group Airlines for America said the changes “are complex security measures” while Andrew Herdman, director-general of Association of Asia Pacific Airlines, added that having a globally coordinated security approach made more sense than having destination-specific requirements.
“Although the measure is more focused on the human component, there is no guarantee that this will actually improve security, particularly as terrorists consistently adapt to security measures,” Atty Barney Alamazar, another Dubai resident, told Khaleej Times.
“The major challenge in our society is to balance passenger rights and security. Passengers need to understand the importance of security measures to counter terrorism while regulators need to understand the importance of human rights and privacy,” he added
“Cooperation is the key, implementing a risk-based approach to screening while assuring respect for passenger dignity. In the words of Benjamin Franklin ‘those who would give up their liberty for security deserve neither and lose both’.” angel@khaleejtimes.com