Australia’s Qantas airline appears certain to be affected by changes in carry-on restrictions, after the UK yesterday joined the USA in banning airline passengers on flights from six countries in the Middle East and North Africa from taking a range of electronic devices into the cabin, due to fears of a possible terrorist attack.
Direct flights to the UK from Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Tunisia and Saudi Arabia will be impacted by the restriction.
While Qantas does not have flights originating in most of those countries, it does touch down in Saudi Arabia and picks up passengers there, who will certainly be affected.
The decision, which mirrors a ban by US Homeland Security, is said to be based on intelligence that radicals are planning to target flights. Under the arrangement, any phones, laptops or tablets larger than a “normal sized mobile or smart phone” must be placed in hold luggage and checked in before a passenger goes through security.
An ABC News report yesterday said most Australian passengers should escape the confusion, as the new rules do not apply to flights from Australia to London or Europe that transit through Dubai or Abu Dhabi. However it seems likely that any passengers joining in those cities would face restrictions on any IT items they seek to bring on board.
A Qantas spokesman confirmed the ban would also affect passengers travelling from Melbourne or Sydney to Dubai, then later on to New York or London.
