Turkish Airlines mulls measures to avoid potential losses from laptop ban

İstanbul, Mar 24 (DHA) – Turkish Airlines is set to take a number of steps to avoid potential losses from a U.S. and U.K. ban preventing passengers from keeping large electronic devices in the cabin, announcing plans to offer special storage and carriage services for the devices, the company’s chief said March 24.
The company has also accelerated its works to offer free Wi-Fi services during flights, according to company representatives.
Turkish Airlines carried 1.45 million passengers to the U.S. in 2016 and 834.359 passengers to the U.K. and in the first two months of this year, THY brought 156.542 passengers to the U.S. and 104.627 to the U.K.
The U.S. and British decisions to forbid devices larger than a cellphone in the cabin on flights from several Middle East and North African states could hit Istanbul hard, after years building up its position as an international hub.
TAV CEO Sani Şener said March 24 that the U.S. and U.K. decisions were mainly commercial.
“This ban will be canceled, we believe,” he said in a meeting in the northwestern province of Bursa.
Turkey is negotiating with international aviation authorities on easing the conditions of the ban, Turkish Transportation Minister Ahmet Arslan said March 24.
“[To convince] these countries to reverse this decision, we have maintained our efforts to take additional technical measures if needed,” he said, adding that Ankara would raise the ban to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).