NEW YORK: The Etihad Airways has come up with a novel idea to work around the bar placed by the Trump administration on carrying of electronic devices like smartphones and tablets on US-bound flights from 10 airports in the Middle East and North Africa.

It has decided to lend tablets to the first and business class passengers for use during its flights.

The airline said on Wednesday that it would offer tablets and vouchers for accessing wi-fi to US-bound passengers from April 2.

Etihad’s hub in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, is among the 10 airports affected by the US move. The government-owned carrier operates 45 flights a week to six American cities: Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and Washington.

Published in Dawn, March 30th, 2017