Dubai Duty Free COO Ramesh Cidambi has issued a statement suggesting that the recently-introduced ban on certain electronics products in cabin luggage onboard flights carrying passengers to the United States will cost the leading duty free operator an estimated $2m in lost revenue across the year.

 

In a general written statement prepared for the press, Cidambi said: “Dubai Duty Free sales to passengers travelling to the US is around 2% of our total sales of US$1.85bn (2016 sales).

 

“Electronics account for around 5% of the total sales to US-bound passengers. As the ban will not affect the sales of telephones or telephone accessories (which are about 55% of the total electronics sales to US passengers) we estimate that the ban will cost us around US$2m in revenue for the year.”

 

THIS BAN MAY WELL BE CHALLENGED IN FUTURE

Put into context, this is not as serious as it might have been, although it is still a lot of money. However, it should also be seen against the volume of these products that DDF sells to ‘all of its passengers, of all nationalities, on all flights’.

 

For example, in total last year it points to sales of 9,340 iPads, 7,729 laptops and 7,882 tablet PCs, although these do not all represent sales to customers in the areas affected by the recent bans.

 

Similarly, DDF sold 99,664 cameras and accessories, 43,164 iPhones and 72,950 non-Apple mobile phones and most of these sales will not be affected by these bans either.

 

 

In the meantime, International Air Transport Association (IATA) Director General and CEO, Alexandre de Juniac has called the ban ’unacceptable’ and ‘ineffective’ and he is now calling on governments to urgently find alternatives to these recently adopted measures by the United States and United Kingdom. These restrict large carry-on electronic items on flights to the UK and US that depart from the Middle East and North Africa.

 

IATA SAYS THE CURRENT BAN IS ‘UNACCEPTABLE’

De Juniac argues that the US and UK laptop bans in cabin baggage on certain flights will not be effective as a security measure: “The current measures are not an acceptable long-term solution to whatever threat they are trying to mitigate,” said de Juniac.

 

“Even in the short term it is difficult to understand their effectiveness. And the commercial distortions they create are severe. We call on governments to work with the industry to find a way to keep flying secure without separating passengers from their personal electronics,” he said.

 

Click here to read Alexandre de Juniac’s full comments of this issue: http://www.trbusiness.com/regional-news/international/iata-judges-laptop-cabin-ban-unacceptable-and-ineffective/117775