With the introduction of the electronics ban in March this year, there has been concern about what happens to our laptops and other electronic devices when travelling to the US and transiting via the Middle East. After all, our laptops have all our life on them sometimes, and the Middle East 3 (Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways) provide a good quality product at good prices.

Ajay & I are currently in the US, and we took one for the team, deciding to put my laptop through the risk to see how the whole process works. Ajay and I were booked to fly into New York JFK from Mumbai all the way on Etihad’s A380 service via Abu Dhabi.  Usually we always travel with 2 laptops and multiple electronic devices but due to the electronic ban and the chaos, we stuck with one computer between the two of us.

I’d earlier read about how proactively Emirates had responded to the electronic ban  saying ;

And then other Middle Eastern airlines like Qatar and Etihad had quickly followed Emirates’ footsteps. Some other airlines such as Kuwait Airways, which I was also checking out for this flight (pro-tip, cheap fares to the USA here), did not make the cut because we never knew about their packaging policies

We carried the laptop in our cabin baggage to Abu Dhabi. Once we arrived into Abu Dhabi we had about 4 hours before we boarded the flight to JFK. The great thing about transiting via Abu Dhabi is that Abu Dhabi has US pre- clearance which means that you complete your US immigration and custom formalities in Abu Dhabi itself. Once you arrive into the US you can just pick up your bags and straight away walk out of the airport.

After going through our security check, I was asked if I had any electronic device on me. I mentioned I was carrying my laptop and was directed to a separate counter where I could see a number of boxes stacked up for packing electronics. I also had a GoPro with me which I thought I could take in my hand bag however security asked me to check that in as well.

So, then they took my laptop and the GoPro, ensconced it in a padded brown envelope, sealed the envelope, affixed a limited release baggage tag across the package and handed over the stub to me.

I noticed that that the brown envelopes were further being placed in carton boxes that would then be loaded in the belly of the aircraft.

The cartons boxes were all marked fragile and there were at least 50 sealed boxes stored. Which probably means that the airline must be handling a minimum of 200 laptops on this flight alone.

I was advised that once I arrived at JFK there will be separate desk at arrivals where all the electronic devices will be kept ready for collection. I could collect my package by producing my baggage receipt.

Rather hesitant, I bid the two devices farewell and we boarded our 14-hour long flight to JFK. This was my first long haul flight without my computer at hand and I had anticipated that the journey would be quite an ordeal without access to my computer. Surprisingly I didn’t miss it much. I watched 3 movies and managed to nap in between the meal breaks.

On arrival into JFK we walked straight down to the baggage claim area. In the center of the hall there was a desk with staff and I could see familiar boxes stacked there.

I went straight up, showed my baggage tag and was handed over my package from the carton box. Both devices were in perfect condition and there wasn’t even a scratch on them.

The only next thing for us to do was to pick up our bags from the baggage belt and walk out of the airport into an Uber.

Have you lately traveled to the US with electronics of late? What has your experience been with checking in your devices?