Originally Posted by GUWonder
A growing number of places in Europe have jumped on the bandwagon in the past few months in regards to laptops.
Some government authorities worried about electronic devices in carry-on luggage and in checked luggage going back to at least the summer of 1985.
It's correct that the powering on of laptops has diminished in the past 7 years at many US and international airports, but for the better part of the 1990s even laptops going through the X-ray resulted in requests for the laptop to be powered on.
One of the last major incidents I personally had with a laptop was in 1996 outside of the US (on a non-US airline) when I was told that "no carry-ons" (i.e., my laptop included) were allowed on certain flights. A few calls while at the airports got that sorted out and I got my laptop on board. (I had no blind faith in the laptop ever getting back to me in one piece otherwise.)
Even at places in South America and in Europe, US airline's retained security overseas had from time to time been requesting laptops be powered on even after 9/11. The last time I saw that with relation to a US airline's flight was in 2002-2003 at EZE, CDG, AMS, and FRA. At some of those places it was a rather frequent request if someone was selected for the dog and pony show of haraSSSSment/proto-haraSSSSment.
regardless, I believe you will agree that running the laptop separately through x-ray machine is a vast improvement over the way things were done in the "old" days.....
BYW, I have been through EZE, AMS and CDG numerous times in the last few years and flew with at least one laptop and sometimes two and have not been asked to power it up. I believe the last time for me was in 2000, going to London.