Telegraph
By Tom Whitehead
British Airways says it will turn away passengers booked on US-bound flights if their electrical devices will not switch on
Britain’s main airline warned that even a new device bought in the airport lounge after passing through security will have to be charged up or the passenger will not be allowed to board at the gate Photo: Alamy
Holidaymakers and business travellers who arrive at airport security with uncharged
mobile phones or other electrical items will be stopped from boarding planes bound for the United States and effectively treated like “terrorists”.
British Airways said passengers who failed to turn on devices when asked will be immediately banned from their US flight and have to reschedule, even if they offer to abandon the item or send it on separately.
Britain’s main airline warned that even a new device bought in the airport lounge after passing through security will have to be charged up or the passenger will not be allowed to board at the gate. Any transfer passenger whose device has gone flat on the first leg will also be prevented from their onward travel unless they can recharge first.
It is the toughest stance taken since America ordered extra security checks on direct flights amid fears al-Qaeda has developed a new bomb that can evade current controls. It was announced on the ninth anniversary of the 7/7 terrorist bombings in London.
Turning on an electronic device can show a security screener that the laptop computer or mobile phone is a working device and that its batteries are not hidden explosives.
British Airways said its move was based on advice from the US authorities. However, the Government only advised that a flat electronic device would not be allowed on the plane and made no mention of passengers themselves being refused travel. It raises the prospect of travellers who are told they cannot fly because their device is flat having their details passed to US security officials.
The move caused confusion at airports on Monday.
At Heathrow, airport staff were advising travellers that if they turn up at security with flat batteries they could go back to the departure lounge to charge them or post the device on to their destination.
One aviation expert said last night that the new regulations went much further than the restrictions imposed on liquids and gels after a major terror plot in 2006 and would create a “debacle” at airports.
Philip Baum, from the Green Light Aviation Security consultancy firm, said: “The terrorists must be sitting there laughing their heads off. We are going to be in a situation where people are having their bags taken off planes because their phone battery has gone dead.
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