Packing has got to be one of the least fun parts of preparing for a holiday or trip abroad. Sticking to the 100ml airport travel liquid limit for a weekend away can make even the most seasoned traveller want to pull their hair out. Not to mention the lists, the limitations, the paralysing doubt that you've forgotten something crucial.
The good news is this: packing will soon be that much less stressful – as will your UK airport experience – because soon you won't have to stick to the 100ml airport travel liquid limit for travelling with hand luggage. The new liquid container limit will be two litres.
The 100ml rule was imposed in November 2006, after a terrorist plot involving explosives in drinks bottles was foiled.
And now, London City Airport has become one of the first airports to scrap the 100ml liquid limit in favour of a 2l limit, just in time for Eater holidays. Thanks to new technology, passengers will no longer have to take out liquids or laptops, tablets and phones from their hand luggage for scanning.
Teesside International Airport was the first airport in the UK to increase the 100ml limit to two litres, but City airport is the first to do so in London.
The UK government has set a deadline for UK airports to update security technology so that it allows travellers to travel with larger containers of liquid in their cabin bags. This means we can take larger-sized beauty and hair products in our hand luggage with minimal hassle, instead of the ridiculously overpriced minis.
This could also lead to a safer and quicker experience when going through airport security. A huge win.
“This investment in next-generation security by the UK’s airport operators will provide a great step forward for UK air travel, matching the best in class around the world," Christopher Snelling, policy director at The Airport Operators Association (AOA), says. "It will make the journey through the UK’s airports easier and air travel itself more pleasant.”
Will anything else be changing?
Yes, the changes in security and technology requirements will also mean that you won't have to get your electronic devices out at security either.
When will these changes come into place?
The deadline for these changes is June 2024 – so for now, it's best to travel with your minis, until further announcements are made from individual airports.
A representative from London Gatwick Airport has confirmed that it's trialling the technology, for example, and are set to meet the summer 2024 deadline. Changes are also in the works at Edinburgh Airport.
What about when you're travelling home through an airport abroad?
It may be a different story if you're connecting to a flight at a different airport, and you'll need to double check if the airport you're travelling through on your journey is also undergoing the same technology changes. The announcement thus far only applies to UK airports.
The GOV UK website advises the following: “[Travellers] should also check the rules for carrying liquids at any airport through which they may transfer during their journey and at their return airport, as many destinations may not have implemented this new technology.”
Have any airports already made these changes?
Shannon Airport in Ireland has already implemented the changes, and have reported a much quicker security process. London City airport and Teesside International Airport have done the same.
According to Airport Technology, similar technology is being utilised in a few other airports across the world, including Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport and in a couple across the US such as Hartsfield-Jackson in Atlanta, Georgia, and O’Hare in Chicago.
So it might be more of a gradual change when it comes to the rest of the world. But still, progress.
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