Since the beginning of June, airports have been thrown into chaos by the planned introduction of new security scanners and then a government U-turn meaning they aren't being used yet.
With long queues now a fixture at Birmingham Airport and many holidaymakers understandably worried about getting stuck before they jet away, a travel expert has shared her best tips to avoid airport stress and to make sure you've done all you can to avoid being stuck in a long line.
Rosie Panter, travel expert at dealchecker, a travel price comparison site, urged people to do three simple things to give themselves the best possible chance of a smooth journey and to avoid having to hand over their cosmetics at the airport.
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Passengers could spend an additional 20 minutes at security if their bag does not meet the compliancy rules (Getty Images/iStockphoto)Always check ahead
Rosie explained: “While we are all excited for the end of the pesky 100ml rule as new CT technology rolls out, many UK airports have once again failed to meet the June 2024 deadline. This has led to the Department for Transport suddenly reintroducing current 100ml restrictions on Friday, despite the likes of Birmingham Airport ready with the new technology in place.
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”As such, little to no warning has been given to passengers expecting to pass through security plain sailing, resulting in almost 20 additional minutes at security per passenger for bags that do not meet the compliancy rules. Prior to your departure date, check online to see if your outbound airport is compliant. If it isn’t, ensure you are adhering to the current rules, and get ready to queue.”
Arrive super early
“Despite airports traditionally advising passengers to arrive two hours ahead of take-off for short haul flights, which in usual cases, gives plenty of time to peruse the delights of duty free, with the chaos currently unfolding in the queue for security, travellers are recommended to allocate no less than three hours for all flights," Rosie said.
“With advice leading the public to believe they are able to exceed the 100ml rule, with no need to remove liquids from their bags across all UK airports, queues have built extremely fast and a hefty number of passenger bags are being held up in the security process.
"This additional hour allows for any extra checks and queue times due to non-compliant bags. It is better to be safe than sorry; get there with plenty of time of time to spare – worst case scenario is you have an hour or so to kill, but at least you haven’t missed your flight.”
Presume the worst
“For now, the best thing we’d suggest is erring on the side of caution," Rosie warned when it came to the topic of liquids in hand luggage.
"Even if you’ve read in the news that your departure airport is allowing liquids that exceed 100ml, you won’t know the full picture until you arrive at the airport. To prevent being pulled aside for a bag check and at worst, losing your expensive skincare, haircare and perfume, stick to the current rules.”
Airports across the UK were originally set the deadline of June 1, 2024 by the government to implement new CT scanner technology that creates 3D images of luggage and would allow 100ml liquid restrictions to be relaxed. However, only a handful of airports managed to meet the deadline, and even not all of those airports had managed to gain regulatory approval to drop the 100ml liquid restriction.
Birmingham Airport was one of the few airports which did, however, since the government's decision to reinforce the 100ml liquid restrictions, the airport has experienced severe delays with passengers queuing outside the airport for up to three hours.
When chaos quickly ensued at airports across the country, due to passenger confusion, the government backtracked and re-implemented the 100ml liquid restrictions across all UK airports.
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