A UK airport has been forced to implement new measures to prevent passengers breaking strict liquid rules.
Confusion over changes to the 100ml liquid regulations have caused problems at airports already this summer.
This has led to staff at Birmingham Airport removing around 1.5 tonnes of liquids, pastes and gels almost every day so far this month.
That’s why the travel hub has implemented additional temporary measures, to try and ease the congestion that has been caused by the rule changes.
Initially, passengers were told they could forget about strict 100ml cabin baggage restrictions because of the installation of new, state-of-the-art security scanners.
The new technology is due to be brought in at every airport in the country, and will in theory make life easier for passengers, who won’t have to stick to the 100ml rules,.
Travellers will also no longer have to remove liquids or electronics from their bags for security checks.
However, after scrapping the liquid rules initially, Birmingham Airport, along with others in the UK to have fitted the new scanners, were told by the UK government they had to stick to the strict rules for the time being.
Although travellers no longer need to remove liquids or electronics from their hand luggage, they do still need to stick to the original 100ml restrictions.
A lack of clarity over the rules has resulted in people queueing for as long as two hours in some cases, as people try and make their way through airport security.
In a bid to mitigate these problems, the airport has now temporarily introduced new procedures.
The measures include opening an enlarged temporary structure providing multiple ‘liquid check stations’ to ensure that customers’ cabin baggage complies with the regulations.
The facility is staffed by third party customer service specialists who will check that customers comply with the current liquid hand luggage rules.
These extra liquid checking stations have been described as “essential” by the airport, who say they will support the airport’s existing security and customer teams.
Nick Barton, CEO of Birmingham Airport, said in a statement: “These new measures are designed to give passengers a smoother and easier experience though security.
“Our enlarged teams will be on hand to explain the new liquid rules, we all have to comply with, and help passengers prepare for security.
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 more we can do together to reduce the number of bags that don’t comply with these rules, the more we can reduce queues at security screening.
“Our additional teams aim to help customers travel through the airport with the minimum of inconvenience arising from these restrictions this summer.”
Nick went on to tell passengers to stick to the liquid rules that had been in place prior to the installation of the new scanners.
He also told passengers to arrive at the airport no earlier than advised by the airline with whom they are flying, with some people turning up early in case of longer queues.
He continued: “As always, our advice is to only turn up when your airline has advised.
“Remember that only containers of 100ml, or less, of liquids, pastes and gels can be carried in cabin luggage.”
Meanwhile, this little-known airport pass could make your trip much quicker.
And this small UK airport has launched new flights to Europe this summer.