Chaos at Birmingham Airport amid confusion over new 100ml liquid rules: Passengers face long queues

Enormous queues have shaped exterior Birmingham Airport at this time amid confusion over new 100ml liquid guidelines and 3D baggage scanners. 

Livid passengers are going through hours-long queues to get via safety after the airport put in a brand new expertise which permits individuals to journey with liquids as much as two litres of their baggage.

Birmingham Airport met the deadline firstly of this month to put in the brand new 3D scanners, however officers on the West Midlands hub determined to mix each the outdated and the brand new guidelines for carrying liquids ’till additional discover’.

The airport mentioned the previous 100ml limits nonetheless apply, however passengers will probably be allowed to hold them inside their hand baggage as an alternative of being individually screened, which has sparked confusion amongst passengers. 

One holidaymaker revealed on social media earlier at this time that he made his gate ‘with minutes to spare’ solely as a result of he ‘pleaded’ to skip the safety queue.

‘Travelling from Birmingham Airport is an absolute shambles. It has the longest queue for safety that I’ve ever seen in my 49 years,’ he mentioned.

‘And test in desks open 2 hours earlier than, regardless of tickets recommending 3 hours. For those who’re reserving vacation now keep away from it just like the plague. 

‘Received to the gate with minutes to spare. And solely as a result of I jumped out of the road and pleaded my case. Tons of could have missed flights. This was at 4am.’

Birmingham Airport mentioned in a press release that alongside the safety delays with the brand new expertise, ‘on-going constructing works on-site’ have added to the ‘ordinary busy morning’ as prospects have waited in ‘lengthy and thin queues’. 

What are the brand new 100ml liquid guidelines?

The present guidelines on liquids states that solely containers of 100ml might be carried in hand baggage. 

This 12 months, nonetheless, passengers at a choose few airports will be capable to carry 330ml containers via safety.

Travellers may go away liquids, laptops and electronics inside their baggage after they stroll via safety.

New 3D expertise will present enhanced screening, permitting prospects to maintain private objects n their hand baggage.

Baggage guidelines will nonetheless fluctuate between totally different airways, so passengers are urged to test earlier than travelling. 

It’s the newest instance of chaos at a British airport following the e-gate mayhem final month, which noticed households ready hours with no ‘meals or water’ after the passport IT system collapsed ‘nationwide’.

The fault with the e-gates left stranding passengers in ever lengthening queues in arrivals halls and in some circumstances trapping them on planes.

The ‘main, main incident’ was brought on by a Wi-Fi outage which in flip stopped a Border Power’s safety database known as ‘Border Crossing’ from with the ability to replace. The system was launched three years in the past, costing taxpayers £372million. 

The fallout from the disruption continues with many passengers expressing their disbelief on the lack of an satisfactory again up plan in place that resulted in some queuing for longer on the border than they spent on their flight from Lisbon. 

Discussing the choice to retain the earlier 100ml restrict, Birmingham Airport mentioned: ‘In the end this new tools will permit liquids of as much as two litres to be taken via in cabin baggage, nonetheless some restrictions quickly stay in place.

‘Till additional discover, passengers are suggested that they’ll solely carry liquids as much as 100ml, albeit it will possibly keep in hand baggage and not must be in a plastic bag.’ 

Birmingham Airport was one of many only a few UK airports to satisfy the federal government deadline for putting in the brand new scanners by June 1.

4 essential UK airports revealed yesterday they will not be capable to scrap the strict 100ml liquid guidelines till subsequent 12 months in a recent blow for holidaymakers.

London Gatwick, London Stansted, East Midlands and Manchester Airport are amongst these to confess they’ve missed the deadline, revealing the scanners won’t be in place till 2025. 

Birmingham and Bristol Airport each introduced they might set up the machines together with Teesside, Southend, Iverness, Stornoway and Aberdeen Airport.

Some passengers have reported what number of have missed their flights whereas others made it to their gates with minutes to spare after pleading to be let via

The delays come amid confusion over new 3D safety scanners at Birmingham airport

A take a look at the large queues exterior Birmingham Airport’s entrance doorways this morning

The present guidelines – which state that liquids can solely be carried in containers of as much as 100ml – have been introduced into place in 2006 after police foiled a terrorist plot to deliver down at the very least seven transatlantic flights with liquid explosives disguised as 500ml drinks bottles. 

Now, new fast-track 3D scanners will produce extra detailed photographs, that means passengers can move via airport safety with containers holding as much as two litres of liquid of their hand baggage.

The brand new expertise is claimed to slash ready occasions by permitting passengers to go away laptops and liquids of their carry-on baggage. 

However, regardless of this addition, with the outdated guidelines in place huge delays have been reported at Birmingham in current weeks with some revealing they’ve missed flights. 

Al Titterington, the airport’s terminal operations director, mentioned: ‘As soon as we obtain the regulatory approval that may permit two litres to be carried as hand baggage via Birmingham airport, we are going to then be capable to rework the client expertise with this world-class safety screening tools.

‘The airport appears to be like ahead with the ability to announce when it receives its regulatory approval for the carriage of two litres, till this time prospects ought to put together as above.’

Photographs of a large queue snaking exterior the airport’s entrance doorways have been taken this morning.

Anxious holidaymakers described the ready occasions to get via safety because the ‘longest they’ve ever seen’.

It comes after weeks of distress and delays on the airport the place passengers have reported lacking flights.

Kevin Brown, who’s travelling from the airport at this time, shared an image of the queues on-line with the caption: ‘Arrive at 5.30am for a 7.45am departure and met with this. Shameful.’

Holidaymaker Alison Woolhouse mentioned she was informed to affix the massive queue exterior the airport after checking her baggage in. She described the scenes as ‘carnage’.

Holidaymakers have described the queues, that are pictured right here going across the nook, as a ‘shame’

The brand new expertise will slash ready occasions by permitting passengers to go away laptops and liquids of their carry-on baggage

The queue time to get via safety was mentioned to have calmed down by round 8am, in response to one passenger on the airport. 

John O’Brien mentioned at 7.55am this morning: ‘Right here now and it is not dangerous in any respect. Forty minutes to queue from exterior to get to safety. Queue hasn’t stopped shifting. Employees very useful.’

The airport completed its £60million ‘state-of-the-art’ safety corridor improve in Might after months of development work. 

It can ultimately permit passengers to hold liquids of as much as two litres in cabin baggage however regardless of the work being accomplished, the airport mentioned that ’till additional discover’ passengers would solely be capable to carry liquids of as much as 100ml as ‘partial regulatory restrictions’ have been in place.

Offering an replace on the brand new safety corridor, a Birmingham Airport spokesperson mentioned yesterday: ‘Birmingham Airport is among the first UK airports to satisfy the June 1 Authorities deadline for the implementation of recent safety screening requirements for passenger and cabin baggage. Nevertheless, sure liquid restrictions will stay in place. 

Livid passengers shared their anger over the queues at Birmingham Airport on-line

Tons of of travellers have been stranded in a single day at Stansted after the e-gate chaos final month

The walkway resulting in passport management at Gatwick airport was full of individuals queuing for the Border Power

‘In the end this new tools will permit liquids of as much as two litres to be taken via in cabin baggage, nonetheless some restrictions quickly stay in place. 

‘Till additional discover, passengers are suggested that they’ll solely carry liquids as much as 100ml, albeit it will possibly keep in hand baggage and not must be in a plastic bag, when departing from Birmingham Airport.

‘The Airport has invested £60m in its new bigger safety space. This space is goal constructed with less complicated, streamlined tools and can futureproof Birmingham Airport from its present 12 million passengers per 12 months in 2024, to accommodate 18m passengers each year by 2033.’

Immediately, a Birmingham Airport spokesperson mentioned: ‘We had a ordinary busy morning at Birmingham Airport, with prospects queuing in unfamiliar areas. The queue was lengthy and thin in elements nonetheless it moved rapidly via the terminal. 

‘Though our new safety corridor is operational, we nonetheless have on-going constructing works on-site and are awaiting regulatory approval that may permit liquids of as much as two litres to be taken via in cabin baggage. 

‘These constructing works will proceed for the foreseeable future as we redevelop the airport, which is a part of our deliberate, and beforehand introduced, £300m funding.’