02 May 2024 , 08:40
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Thousands of Jet2, Ryanair, EasyJet and TUI passengers have been caught up in confusion at security checks due to a new hand luggage rule.
Birmingham Airport is among those gearing up to roll out new liquid scanners that promise to ease the security process for all the major carriers. However, a staggering 15 per cent of travellers at the airport are having their carry-on bags turned away because of the existing liquid rule. It follows reports that airports such as Birmingham, Bristol and Liverpool John Lennon haven't got the new tech up and running yet unlike Aberdeen, Teesside and London City which are all operational.
Passengers at the airport are facing the frustration of having their hand luggage rejected at security, under the mistaken belief that the 100ml liquid restriction has been lifted. A spokesperson from Birmingham Airport shared with Travel Gossip: "We wish to remind our customers that existing security restrictions remain in place."
The airport representative highlighted the issue, saying: "This can be confusing to our customers and on average 15% of bags are rejected as they are not compliant with current security restrictions. For each customer, a non-compliant bag adds 10 minutes on top of their security search time."
The government had initially set a deadline of 1 June 2024 for airports to install new scanners, but this has now been extended to 2025. Meanwhile, Birmingham Airport continues to enforce current regulations: passengers must remove liquids, pastes and gels up to 100ml, contained within a resealable bag measuring 20 x 20cm, from their bags and place them in the security scanning tray, along with any electrical items removed from their cases, reports Birmingham Live.
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The spokesperson added: "We saw a usual busy Monday morning at Birmingham Airport with customers queuing downstairs, which is the new normal, as the upstairs queuing area has been taken out of service as we construct our new security area.
"We encountered a technical issue with our security lanes, which compounded the peak departure schedule and hindered our operation. We sincerely apologise to our customers for the level of service that they received, this is not what we aim to deliver here at Birmingham Airport."