The U.S. Homeland Security chief says he’s considering banning laptop computers from the passenger cabins of all international flights to and from the United States.
John Kelly says there are signs of a “real threat” against civilian aviation from carry-on electronic devices.
Speaking on the Fox News Sunday television program, Kelly said terrorists are “obsessed” with the idea of “knocking down an airplane in flight.”
The ban would expand a March order that affects about 50 flights per day to the United States from 10 cities, in the Middle East and North Africa. The ban requires all electronics larger than a smartphone to be checked in.
About 3,250 flights a week are expected this summer between European Union countries and the United States, according to aviation industry figures.
Britain has taken similar measures targeting flights from Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Tunisia and Saudi Arabia.
In Europe last week, during President Donald Trump’s nine-day foreign trip, Kelly met with European Commission officials in Brussels to discuss a possible laptop ban in airplane cabins.
– VOA
