US lifts electronics ban on Turkish Airlines and Emirates flights

Flying to the US from Turkey or Dubai? You'll be glad to hear you can now carry your laptop again on flights.

On Wednesday, Turkish Airlines and Emirates became the latest Middle Eastern airlines to announce that the electronics ban affecting passengers on flights to the US is no longer applicable to them.

The US government put the ban in place in March, claiming specific intelligence threats indicated that large electronics could be used to conceal bombs. The ban applied to airlines flying from eight Middle Eastern and North African nations to cities in the US and meant that any electronics larger than a phone had to be stored in the hold.

In order for the ban to be lifted, airlines must prove they are carrying out more rigorous security checks on passengers, both at the airport and before they arrive, as well as using bomb-detecting sniffer dogs.

On Sunday, Abu Dhabi-based Etihad became the first airline to be free of the ban.

Emirates flies to 12 US cities from Dubai, but had to cut flights to five of those cities in May as demand tailed off following the ban.

Both Emirates and Turkish Airlines tweeted their new status.

Effective immediately laptops & electronic devices can be taken onboard all Emirates flights from Dubai to the US https://t.co/ii805S5mkN pic.twitter.com/iU7WCFKSq1

— Emirates airline (@emirates) July 5, 2017

Dear Passengers, #WelcomeOnBoard to our US-bound flight. Please fasten your seatbelts and enjoy your own electronic devices. pic.twitter.com/WbcZwNPhrf

— Turkish Airlines (@TurkishAirlines) July 4, 2017

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