Turkish Airlines begins US, UK electronic device ban

ISTANBUL

DHA photo

Turkish Airlines has started implementing regulations forbidding passengers from Middle Eastern and North African countries from carrying electronic devices larger than cell phones aboard the plane on March 25, the national carrier said on its website.      

Turkish Airlines personnel have reportedly taken passengers’ electronic devices such as tablets and laptops at boarding gates to store them in special containers, as reported by local news agencies. 

The first warning to passengers is made at check-in counters. Transit passengers are informed at transit halls. 

Passengers are asked to leave large electronic devices, including tablets, cameras and laptops, to be stored in a solid baggage. Passengers’ data are written on each package and put in a special baggage to be taken to the cargo section of the respective airplane. 

The baggage is delivered by a specialized staff after the airplane lands and is later submitted over to its owners at the baggage delivery point. 

Turkish Airlines said it guarantees that passengers’ devices will not be damaged or lost, according to company representatives.

The company also accelerated its works to offer free Wi-Fi services during flights to avoid the negative effects of the U.S. and U.K. ban, according to company representatives. 

The ban became effective on March 25. 

The inclusion of Istanbul’s Atatürk Airport and Turkish Airlines was a big surprise, the company chief said on March 24. 

“An authorized security services company is on duty there. The company staff has already searched all goods carried by airline personnel and passengers thoroughly. Despite this and all other security measures, we were shocked when we saw Atatürk Airport was on the ban list. We believe that this decision will be reversed soon,” Turkish Airlines CEO Bilal Ekşi told state-run Anadolu Agency. 

Turkish Airlines in 2016 carried 1.45 million passengers to the U.S. and 834,359 passengers to the U.K., according to Reuters. 

In the first two months of this year, Turkish Airlines carried 156,542 passengers to the U.S. and 104,627 to the U.K.