FOUR major UK airports have confirmed that they won’t be able to scrap strict liquid rules until some point next year.
Passengers will soon be able to travel without having to worry about restricting their liquids to 100ml, with new technology being put in place.
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New scanners are due to be installed at all of the country’s airports that will stop people from having to remove electronics or liquids from their bags at security gates.
It will also increase the maximum size of a liquid from 100ml to two litres.
Initially, the new scanners were meant to be in place everywhere by June 1 this year, but very few airports have come close to completing the installation.
Recently Birmingham Airport and Bristol Airport both announced that they would soon have the machines up and running, joining a short list of other travel hubs with the scanners in place.
They include Teesside, Newcastle London City, Southend, Inverness, Stornoway and Aberdeen.
Regulatory approval is yet to be granted for the increased liquid limits at Birmingham.
However, four other major airports have since confirmed that they are lagging and won’t have the new security scanners in place until at least next year.
London Gatwick, London Stansted, East Midlands and Manchester Airport are among those to have missed the initial deadline and have said the scanners won’t be ready until 2025.
This was confirmed in quotes given to travel news publication TTG in which they said that although they had made positive progress on the installation, it will be months before it’s finished.
Manchester Airports Group, who operate Manchester Airport, Stansted and East Midlands said: “We continue to make good progress at all three of our airports on the introduction of new security screening equipment.
“We are currently rolling out the new technology lane-by-lane at Manchester and London Stansted airports.
“We already have new scanners in place on a large number of lanes, with the full completion of the programme expected in 2025.”
Meanwhile, Gatwick has said that work is underway and that they are on course to have all the machines completely installed by the first quarter of next year.
Elsewhere, Heathrow is set to finish its installation before the end of this year but has urged passengers to continue preparing for security “as normal” for the time being.
What are the passport rules?
The Sun’s Head of Travel Lisa Minot has explained exactly what Brits need to know.
“Travellers used to be able to roll over up to nine unused months from their old passport onto a new one.
“But post-Brexit, anyone wanting to travel to the EU can no longer rely on those extra months.
“In order to travel to the EU, all passports must be no more than 10 years old on the day you arrive in your European destination.
“And you’ll need at least three months on your passport on the day you head back to the UK.
“Figures have shown up to 100,000 holidaymakers a year face being turned away at airports if their passport is more than 10 years old.
“The 10-year rule only applies to countries in the European Union but every country may have different rules on what is accepted – some countries like South Africa, for example, insist you have at least six months left on your passport when you travel and a full clear page.”
The airline is investing £1 billion into the new systems, with 146 new security lanes to be added.
Even though some of the airports have the new scanners in place, passengers have been warned that they should still stick to the 100ml rules for now.
Travel trade association ABTA has said that the current 100ml rules are still in place at many overseas airports and that passengers could get caught out on their return journeys.
ABTA’s message is simply to carry on “as if nothing has changed” for the time being, until more airports have the tech in place.
Luke Petherbridge, ABTA’s Director of Public Affairs, said: “To help everyone enjoy a stress-free experience this half-term, our message is simple – you can’t go wrong if you stick to the current rules around liquids and laptops when preparing your hand luggage.
“The new airport scanners will make things faster and strengthen security once they’re fully implemented.
“While we have this period whereby airports are still working to implement the changes, the best thing to do is travel as if nothing has changed.”
Meanwhile, here is a list of the airports that have already scrapped the 100ml liquid rules.
And this is how much liquid you can currently take on a plane.
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