Birmingham Airport is set to scrap the 100ml liquid hand luggage rule next week as it leads the way in time for the half-term weekend.
It will be the first major British airport to drop the restrictions, with the introduction of new fast-track scanners ending the need to remove liquids from carry-ons during security checks.
The current rules – which state that liquids can only be carried in containers of up to 100ml – were brought into place in 2006 after police foiled a terrorist plot to bring down at least seven transatlantic flights with liquid explosives disguised as 500ml drinks bottles.
But now, the new 3D scanner technology set to be implemented at all UK airports will produce more detailed images, meaning passengers can pass through airport security with containers holding up to two litres of liquid in their hand luggage.
The new technology will slash waiting times by allowing passengers to leave laptops and liquids in their carry-on baggage
A June 2024 deadline was previously set by the Department of Transport for all airports to introduce the new CT scanners, however almost none of the major travel hubs are likely to meet this date.
The first major UK airport that looks set to hit the deadline is Birmingham Airport, according to The Times.
It will be introducing the new, more relaxed measures at the beginning of next month, coinciding with the last weekend of the half-term holidays.
Some smaller airports – London City, in the Docklands, and Teesside Airport in Darlington – have already installed the new technology, but the vast majority are yet to.
This means holidaymakers across the country will still face long waits at most major airports this summer, with London Heathrow, Gatwick, and Manchester unlikely to be ready to roll out the new scanners. It is understood they now have until June 2025.
Birmingham Airport will become the first major UK airport to implement the new scanners which will scrap the need for the 100ml liquid rule
The new technology also means passengers would no longer need to remove laptops or liquids from their bags when putting them through security scanners.
Luton and Bristol airports are aiming to follow Birmingham in introducing the scanners by June, with Bristol investing more than £10million in security equipment.
Several airports already have the technology installed in some security lanes, but have not yet implemented them across the board.
Gatwick has said it hopes to have all remaining scanners installed by the first three months of next year, a time frame similar to that of Stansted and Manchester.
Speaking of the innovative technology, Nick Barton, chief executive of Birmingham airport, told The Times: ‘The existing scanner is like a large domestic washing machine.
‘The new machines are the size of a Ford Transit.’
The 2006 Al-Qaeda bomb plot saw terrorists attempt to take home-made mixtures of chemicals concealed as ordinary drinks bottles onto a number of US and Canada-bound flights departing from London.
An immediate ban on all liquids except baby milk in carry-ons was put into effect in both the UK and the US, but was relaxed in November 2006 to the 100ml liquid limit.
The new technology will work by allowing staff to rotate, tilt and zoom in on each 3D image, allowing them to better inspect the contents without passengers having to remove them from their bags.