DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The Latest on new security measures on U.S.-bound flights from the Middle East and elsewhere (all times local): 7:15 p.m. A U.S. government spokeswoman says new security measures on incoming flights to America from
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The Latest on new security measures on U.S.-bound flights from the Middle East and elsewhere (all times local):
7:15 p.m.
A U.S. government spokeswoman says new security measures on incoming flights to America from abroad “will impact all flights.”
Lisa Farbstein, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Transportation Security Administration, told The Associated Press on Wednesday that affects the approximately 2,100 flights arriving daily to America.
She said in a statement that the new security measures “may include” enhancing passenger screening, heightened screening of electronics and increasing security measures.
She says both U.S. citizens and foreigners will face the same security.
The agency’s comments come as six global long-haul carriers said they will start asking passengers security questions before they board flights at the request of U.S. officials.
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5:30 p.m.
Jordan’s national carrier says it will implement new security procedures on U.S.-bound flights in mid-January, at the request of U.S. aviation authorities.
Basel Kilani, a spokesman for Royal Jordanian, said on Wednesday that the airline will submit questions to passengers before check-in.
Kilani says he doesn’t know what types of questions would be asked. He says that Royal Jordanian asked to delay the implementation of the measures until January, and that the request was granted.
Royal Jordanian operates direct flights from Amman to New York, Chicago and Detroit.
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4 p.m.
Air France says it will begin new security interviews of passengers on U.S.-bound flights.
The airline says it will start the new procedures on Thursday at Paris Orly Airport and a week later, on Nov. 2, at Charles de Gaulle Airport.
Air France said on Wednesday that the extra screening will take the form of a questionnaire handed over to “100 percent” of passengers.
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3:40 p.m.
Egypt’s national airline says it is tightening security on its flights to New York following a request by U.S. security authorities.
In a Wednesday statement, EgyptAir says the new measures will begin Thursday and include more detailed searches of passengers and their luggage, and include interviews. The strict procedures will extend to unauthorized agricultural or veterinary products.
The statement did not say if the change was linked to any new specific concerns or threats.
Earlier this year, Cairo was among a list of cities from which U.S. and British authorities banned electronic devices larger than smartphones in carry-on luggage, before the ban was lifted.
Airline security in Egypt has been a concern internationally since a bomb killed all aboard a Russian airliner flying back from Sharm el-Sheikh in 2015.
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3:30 p.m.
Four global long-haul airlines say passengers on U.S.-bound flights face new security interviews at the request of American officials.
Cathay Pacific, EgyptAir, Emirates and Lufthansa all say they will begin the interviews from Thursday.
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.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment. However, it comes at the end of a 120-day deadline for airlines to meet new U.S. regulations following the ban on laptops in airplane cabins of some Mideast airlines being lifted.
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2:05 p.m.
Long-haul carrier Emirates says it is starting new screening procedures for U.S.-bound passengers following it receiving “new security guidelines” from American authorities.
Emirates said in a statement Wednesday that it would begin doing “pre-screening interviews” at its check-in counters for passengers flying out of Dubai and at boarding gates for transit and transfer fliers.
The airline said that comes on top of other security measures it conducts.
The new procedures come after the Trump administration’s previous ban on laptops in airplane cabins for some Mideast airlines. That, coupled with the travel ban, has hurt Middle Eastern airlines.
Emirates, the region’s biggest, said it slashed 20 per cent of its flights to America in the wake of the restrictions.
It wasn’t immediately clear if other Mideast airlines were affected.
