Page 22 - AAA JUNE - JULY 2017 Online Magazine

FeAture SECURITY

Crisis Averted, For Now

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has shelved its plan to expand the ban on electronic
devices to flights from Europe
By Arun Sivasankaran

tom WHALen, A retired sCHooL Whalen is certainly not the only one who United States each day.
teacher in Florida, plans to travel to Europe believes authorities should devise ways
in July. “After all that you hear in the media to make air travel safer, but most industry Situation Still Fluid
these days about terrorism, I must admit that experts are of the opinion that the Trump There was major panic among carriers in
I am a little scared of flying,” he says. “I know administration may have saved the global the U.S. and Europe when Kelly said in a
banning electronic items from the cabins of airline industry from a catastrophic fall by TV interview that he was thinking about
planes is an unpopular move, but I believe it deciding to shelve the proposed expansion expanding the ban because of credible
will make air travel safer. It shouldn’t be just of the ban. terrorist threats. The rethink, which came
the U.S. doing it though; it should be across If the ban had been expanded, it would about after hectic parleys between U.S. and
the board.” The ban on laptops and other have hurt American carriers as much as European Commission officials, has been
electronic items on flights, which came into their European counterparts, thus causing a met with a guarded response as the Trump
effect in March, currently applies to flights crippling effect on the industry. The current administration has announced that the
for the United States from ten airports in the ban, which affects 350 flights per week, has expansion of the ban is not off the table and
Middle East and Africa. The U.S. Department already substantially dented the prospects would be introduced if “the intelligence and
of Homeland Security (DHS) was leaning of carriers in the Middle East. If Kelly had threat level warrant it.”
towards expanding the ban to cover flights gone ahead with his original plan, as many For now, the focus seems to be in using
from Europe to the U.S., but shelved the as 390 flights per day would have been technology to counter threats posed by
idea following hectic parleys between impacted, according to the International Air newly minted terror strategies. According
DHS Secretary John Kelly and European Transport Association. As many as 4,300 to the DHS, the U.S. and the European
Commission officials. international flights take off and land in the Commission has agreed “on the need to

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