Aberdeen International Airport has become the third in the UK to allow passengers to keep laptops and liquids in their bags when going through security, with more travel hubs to follow
Aberdeen International Airport has become the third UK airport to scrap the 100ml liquid rule for hand luggage, following in the footsteps of Teesside and London City airports.
The change comes as new scanners are introduced across the country, despite government frustration over missed deadlines for their summer implementation. The airport now allows passengers to keep laptops and liquids in their bags when going through security, a move that has reportedly cut queue times by half at other airports due to the elimination of manual bag checks, reports the Manchester Evening News.
Thanks to the installation of Next Generation Security Checkpoint Scanners, the previous 100ml liquid rule is no longer in force. Departing passengers can now carry bottles containing up to two litres in their hand luggage. Additionally, travellers will be able to keep electrical items like laptops in their carry-on bags when they pass through the new 3D scanners.
However, it was revealed earlier this month that the nationwide relaxation of rules around airline passengers carrying liquids in hand luggage has been postponed by a year. The government has given extensions to several large UK airports unable to meet its June 1 deadline for the full installation of new scanning technology.
For those airports yet to implement the new scanners, the 100ml limit remains and containers must be placed in clear plastic bags.
The initial deadline for most major airports to install new scanners was set for December 2022, an agreement made in August 2019 by then-prime minister Boris Johnson. However, Covid-19 caused significant disruptions within the aviation sector and in December 2022, Transport Secretary Mark Harper extended the deadline to June 1 2024.
Furthermore, ministers have granted several airport-specific deadline extensions of up to 12 months, presumably providing enough time for all necessary work to be completed. Due to security concerns, the Department for Transport did not disclose any information on the current status at each airport.
Mr Harper has declared: “These cutting-edge scanners will make air travel safer and easier for passengers by strengthening security even further. The UK is leading the world with its rollout of this technology, but it’s important we give those airports yet to meet the deadline a second chance to get the job done. Until they do, passengers should continue to check before travelling.”
Its reported that Heathrow Airport is working towards having all its security lanes equipped with new scanners by this summer. Meanwhile, Gatwick isn’t far behind with plans to finish the programme by March next year. In addition, Manchester Airports Group, handling Manchester, East Midlands, and Stansted airports, estimates full deployment of their scanners by 2025.
London City made nationwide headlines when it became the first UK’s main airport to implement these revolutionary scanners for all passengers in April last year. This phenomenal upgrade originated from the need for stringent airport security measures put in place for liquids back in 2006, following a disrupted terror plot that threatened to blow up planes flying from London to the US using homemade liquid explosives.
In Aberdeen, Airport Security Manager William Wallace remarked: “We are delighted to have the NGSC scanners operational at Aberdeen. We are well ahead of the deadline set by the Government thanks to all the hard work from our staff and contractors.”
He also offered a critical update to passengers, stating that: “This is one of the biggest changes in airport security so we would ask passengers to be prepared for this new process and to have patience as we enter the biggest change in aviation security in nearly two decades.”
Passengers were advised, due to possible regulatory differences between airports. Mr Wallace further stressed: “It is important to check what the process is at both your departing airport and any other airports you will travel through or from before you set off, as this may be different.”
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