ME airlines forced to adapt to Trump’s Muslim ban

Middle East airlines and airports have been forced to adapt to US President Donald Trump’s travel ban on seven Muslim-majority countries.

Emirates has amended pilot and cabin crew rosters for its services to US destinations following the ban while Etihad said it had offered refunds or re-bookings to affected passengers.

Emirates also said a “small number” of passengers had been affected by the changes to US immigration rules enforced by Trump on Saturday, while Dubai Airports CEO Paul Griffiths said a “handful of people” had been stopped from flying to the United States from Dubai International Airport.

“The effect has been very minimal at the moment,” he said. “We don’t have the exact figures but literally a handful of people have had to be looked after and repatriated to their point of origin.

Trump has banned nationals of Iran, Iraq, Sudan, Somalia, Syria, Yemen and Libya from entering the US for a four-month period, sparking anger and confusion amongst air passengers, some of whom were left stranded in airports at the weekend.

Emirates said it was assisting affected travellers with their flight re-bookings.

The airline is offering rebooking and refund options to passengers holding passports from the seven affected nations who are booked to travel to/from the US.

Meanwhile, UK holidaymakers are turning their backs on the US as a potential leisure destination as a result of the policies of the new Trump administration, according to new data released by flight and travel search website, Cheapflights.

The company’s managing director, Andrew Shelton, revealed there had been a 15 percent drop in searches for US destinations since Trump’s inauguration on 20 January.

“On the face of it, our data suggests Brits are voicing their disapproval of the President with their clicks,” he said. “Since Trump took office, we’ve seen a 15 percent drop in searches for travel to the US – and both the confusion over the weekend’s announcements about travel restrictions, and media coverage of the reaction, could stoke that uncertainty further.

“It’s too early to point to a ‘Trump Slump’ – we know it takes a lot to knock Brits off their desire to travel – but they are fickle. If this trend continues then the US tourism authorities shouldn’t necessarily presume Brits will be thinking ‘America First’ when it comes to their holiday plans this year with quite the same certainty as they have in the past.”