The ban imposed by the US and the UK on carriage of laptops and other electronic items on board flights from some countries is ‘not an acceptable long-term solution’ and its effectiveness in the short term is also questionable, global airlines body IATA said on Wednesday. It said the ‘only way’ to stop terrorists was to share intelligence between Governments and the aviation industry.
In a statement, the IATA asked the Governments to ‘urgently find alternatives’ to the steps recently announced by the US and the UK to restrict carry-on electronic items on flights from the Middle East and North Africa. “The current measures are not an acceptable long-term solution to whatever threat they are trying to mitigate. Even in the short term it is difficult to understand their effectiveness. And the commercial distortions they create are severe,” Alexandre de Juniac, IATA Director General and CEO, said.