US removes laptop ban on Royal Jordanian

Amman, July 10 (IANS): The Royal Jordanian airlines, which was among banned ones with regards to the laptop ban, have become the latest Middle Eastern airlines to allow passengers carry laptops in the cabin on US-bound flights.

"Enhanced security measures are now implemented to meet the requirements of the U Department of Homeland Security's new security guidelines for all US bound flights," Xinhua news agency quoted Royal Jordanian President and CEO Stefan Pichler as saying in a statement on Sunday.

He added: "We are glad that our guests can now fly onboard Royal Jordanian and use their electronic devices. We highly appreciate our passengers' patience and understanding during the time of the ban."

Royal Jordanian operates 16 weekly non-stop flights to three major US cities: daily flights to Chicago and New York, and two weekly flights to Detroit.

Etihad, Turkish Airlines, Emirates and Qatar Airways became exempt from the laptop ban last week, reports the BBC.

The US imposed the ban in March on direct flights from eight Muslim-majority countries -- Egypt, Morocco, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Turkey -- over security issues that bombs could be hidden in the devices.

Last month, the US Department of Homeland Security had announced measures requiring additional time to screen passengers and electronic devices on US-bound flights from 105 countries.

Airlines in Morocco, Egypt and Saudi Arabia are yet to announce a lifting of the laptop ban.