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US companies ban travel to the Middle East
More than a fourth of U.S. companies are altering their policies regarding international travel in light of the al Qaeda threat against Americans in the Middle East.
A survey of 63 travel managers from eight countries conducted Monday and Tuesday by the Business Travel Coalition (BTC) found that 28.65% have either temporarily banned travel to countries where embassies have been closed, or instituted a mandated review of travel plans to assess alternatives or an elevated travel approval process.
One in ten respondents said they are changing their meetings policies; of that 10%, all have banned meetings-related travel to the affected countries, and a third have temporarily banned all meetings-related travel.
No respondent reported any plans to change policies on travel within U.S. borders.
Given the new intelligence suggesting that al Qaeda may launch attacks in the Middle East, North Africa and elsewhere during August, and the closing of U.S. embassies and travel warnings, BTC wanted to understand the steps companies were taking, it said.
The survey found travel departments also are increasing the frequency of travel advisories and reviewing crisis-contingency plans.
A majority of travel managers (57.9%) are concerned about the tracking of travelers’ whereabouts during a crisis, and agreed that IATA Resolution 787 will make it more difficult to change itineraries after a trip begins, since multiple airlines could be sitting on pieces of the PNR. Only 5% disagreed.
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