Latest news with #liquidsrule
Forbes
6 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
More Airport Security Changes Could Be Coming Under Trump, Expert Says
Two aviation experts have said they wouldn't be surprised if more changes are made to Transportation Security Administration policies under Trump after Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Wednesday she's questioning 'everything TSA does" and may soon change the longheld rule that allows only liquids measuring 3.4 ounces or smaller to be carried through security. TSA checkpoint security screening information in Miami. Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images Homeland Security officials have said they are reviewing all of TSA's current rules and "exploring new and innovative ways to enhance the passenger experience and our strong security posture,' which Matthew Borie, chief intelligence officer at Osprey Flight Solutions, an aviation security firm, told Forbes could lead to more policy changes around personal electronics and documentation. Noem said changing the liquids rule "may be the next big announcement" but gave no further details on what the changes could be or when they'd be implemented, and the vague suggestion comes less than two weeks after TSA confirmed it would eliminate its 19-year policy that required any passengers without pre-approval to remove their shoes and send them through an x-ray machine. Standard security procedures currently allow passengers to have liquids and gels in amounts less than 3.4 ounces in their carry-on luggage, but they must be placed in a clear zippered bag and removed at the security checkpoint for separate scanning. The increasing installation of upgraded CT (computed tomography) machines at airport security checkpoints to scan carry-on baggage, however, is making it less necessary for liquids to be removed from bags, Borie said. He predicted that a change to the liquid policy wouldn't affect the amount that could be carried, but would end the need to remove them at security, and said the change would make the policy reflect technological upgrades that have largely already been made. He said the same is true of the shoe rules—that installation of full body scanners have made it unnecessary for shoes to be scanned separately—and that he thinks the same type of rule change could be extended to personal electronic devices because upgraded CT machines also make their removal from bags redundant. In addition, Borie said he thinks more changes are coming to how documents are handled at airports, and that passengers should expect to see more biometric scanners in the near future and other new uses of technology in the long run, including blockchain digital passports. Sheldon Jacobson, an aviation security expert and University of Illinois engineering professor, told Forbes he doesn't doubt more changes are on the way and he believes Noem's vision is "sound," but that she'll need to enhance some measures, like facial recognition, to make up for the axed policies and ensure public confidence in air safety. Get Forbes Breaking News Text Alerts: We're launching text message alerts so you'll always know the biggest stories shaping the day's headlines. Text 'Alerts' to (201) 335-0739 or sign up here : "Simply put, air system security should not be determined by popular opinion or polls, but by sound analysis and research," Jacobson told Forbes. What To Watch For How changes to security lines impact enrollment in TSA Pre-Check. Right now, the more than 20 million people who have been pre-screened and cleared by DHS are allowed to bypass some security measures—like leaving electronics and liquids in their bags and keeping shoes on. If those policies become the norm, Keith Jeffries, vice president of K2 Security Screening Group and a former TSA employee, said he thinks that could lead to a drop in enrollment and, in turn, could hinder security efforts. 'Those who have been cleared for TSA Pre-Check are 'trusted travelers,' and a drop in enrollment would degrade that trusted traveler population and, perhaps, reduce safety,' Jeffries said. 'The more we know about you, the better. We need you to be who you say you are, so we can get you the right type of screening.' Peter DiDomenica, who helped draft TSA's "shoes off" policy, said he agrees it's no longer necessary for every passenger to remove their shoes, but he thinks it should still be a resource in TSA's tool box. 'I don't agree with the total elimination of it,' he told Fox 25, a local Boston news station. 'Continue to x-ray shoes on a very limited basis, even just 1% of the time. Randomly select people and let the bad guys… feel there's a possibility they could get caught.' Why Does Tsa Only Allow 3 Ounces Of Liquids In Carry-On Bags? In 2006, authorities foiled a plot to use liquid explosives smuggled aboard carry-on luggage to blow up planes. The plan involved carrying homemade chemical cocktails aboard planes in sports drink bottles and terrorists planned to take their liquid bombs on U.S. and Canada-bound flights from London, according to the BBC. Why Did Tsa Require Passengers To Remove Their Shoes At The Airport? A man named Richard Reid, who has since earned the name "shoe bomber," tried to take down a flight from Paris to Miami in December 2001 with homemade bombs he'd hidden in his shoes, Once on board, Reid failed to light the fuse before crew members and passengers noticed and restrained him. The plane diverted to Logan International Airport in Boston and DiDomenica, then the director of aviation security in Boston, said he immediately wrote a policy for screening shoes at Logan, which ultimately shaped TSA's policy. If Reid had succeeded, the FBI said his bomb would have blown a hole in the plane's fuselage and caused it to crash. TSA eliminated the shoe rule last week. Does Real Id Enhance Security? The new shoe policy and potential change to the liquid rule comes as TSA implements a new rule requiring all passengers to carry a 'REAL ID' or other approved documentation (like a passport), and no longer allows people to fly with standard drivers licenses as their identification. People must meet enhanced federal security standards to be issued a REAL ID, including providing proof of identity documents and proof of residency. The REAL ID Act was signed into law 20 years ago and originally scheduled for implementation in 2008 before being repeatedly delayed. Enforcement of the REAL ID requirements finally began in May, and travelers without one are subject to extra screening at airports. Forbes Delta Shares Leap 13% On Profit Forecast That's Down From January By Suzanne Rowan Kelleher Forbes Canadian Visitors To U.S. Plummet 33% In June—Sixth Straight Month Of Steep Declines By Suzanne Rowan Kelleher Forbes First U.S. Airline—United—Will Resume Flights To Israel By Suzanne Rowan Kelleher Forbes These 3 Airlines Were Cyberattacked In The Last 3 Weeks—Here's What We Know By Suzanne Rowan Kelleher
CTV News
16-07-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Liquids rule could be the next U.S. airport security screening change, DHS Secretary suggests
Delta planes at Terminal C of LaGuardia Airport (LGA) in the Queens borough of New York, U.S., on Sunday, April 7, 2024. The liquid rule for carry-on bags could be the next airport security measure to be overhauled. Kristi Noem, U.S. Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, hinted at a possible policy change on Wednesday at the Hill Nation Summit hosted by The Hill and NewsNation in Washington. 'But I will tell you — I mean the liquids — I'm questioning. So that may be the next big announcement is what size your liquids need to be,' Noem told NewsNation's host Blake Burman. Noem's comments came shortly after DHS rolled back a rule in place for nearly two decades requiring travelers to remove their shoes at Transportation Security Administration checkpoints. The DHS oversees the TSA, which was established after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. The TSA's 3-1-1 liquids rule — which requires that liquids in carry-on luggage be limited to 3.4 ounces or less and stored in a single, one-quart, resealable plastic bag — was introduced in September 2006. The rule was established shortly after a terrorist plot to detonate liquid explosives on transatlantic flights was foiled by British police, according to an official TSA timeline. Larger quantities of liquids, gels and aerosols are permitted in checked luggage. Noem spoke more broadly about streamlining the airport screening experience for U.S. travelers. 'Hopefully the future of an airport, where I'm looking to go, is that you walk in the door with your carry-on suitcase, you walk through a scanner and go right to your flight,' Noem said. 'It takes you one minute.' Noem said DHS is talking with various companies about technology that could help achieve that goal, adding that travelers will see pilot programs at a few airports before such measures would be implemented widely. The secretary added that the multi-layered security screening system allows for changes. 'It is still a process that is protecting people who are traveling on our airlines, but it has to make sense,' she said. 'It has to actually do something to make you safer,' Noem said, followed by a dig at the Biden administration. TSA and DHS did not immediately respond to CNN's request for more details about possible policy changes.
Yahoo
08-07-2025
- Yahoo
100ml liquids limit scrapped at Birmingham and Edinburgh airport security
Nineteen years after aviation security was tightened with the so-called '100ml liquids rule', two leading UK airports have scrapped the limit. Passengers using Birmingham and Edinburgh can keep all their belongings – including containers holding up to two litres – in a bag through the checkpoint. But travellers are warned that the rules for their return journey are likely to be different. In 2006, British detectives uncovered a terror plot to assemble explosives on board transatlantic aircraft from liquids carried in hand luggage. A limit of 100ml on the size of containers of liquids, aerosols and gels ('LAGs') was brought in hastily in 2006 as 'a temporary measure'. The aim is to replace the traditional X-ray machine at security checkpoints with medical-grade scanners that can analyse the molecular structure of the contents of a passenger's bag and detect potential threats. A series of government instructions was due to see all major UK airports fitted with the new equipment by June 2024. But some key hubs missed the deadline. At airports that were compliant, within days the 100ml limit was re-imposed because of concerns over the working of the new hardware and software. At the time the Department for Transport (DfT) said it was a 'temporary move' to 'enable further improvements to be made to the new checkpoint systems'. Ahead of the summer rush of 2025, almost every security lane at UK airports is equipped with new kit. Passengers are able to keep liquids and laptops in their cabin bags, potentially accelerating the security check while making it less intrusive. But the 100ml LAGs limit has applied until this month. Now, airports whose security protocols are signed off by the DfT can drop the 100ml limit. A spokesperson for the department said: 'Some airports are rolling out new technology that will allow liquid containers up to two litres to be taken through security in hand luggage. 'As this will be happening at different times at UK airports, passengers should continue to check security requirements with airports before they travel and come prepared with liquids in containers no larger than 100 ml in hand baggage unless advised otherwise.' So far only Birmingham and Edinburgh have been approved. At the West Midlands airport, passengers are urged not to put 'liquids, pastes and gels into plastic bags', being told instead to 'leave them loose in hand luggage'. Gordon Dewar, chief executive of the Scottish capital's airport, said: 'A whole generation of travellers have only known the 100ml rule to be the case, so it really is a momentous day as we become the first airport in Scotland to lift the rule since it was introduced in 2006. 'The change allows more flexibility for passengers to take liquids through security, all while maintaining and improving our high safety levels through the use of 3D technology. But it is important that passengers continue to check with the situation at their return airport as not all airports will be moving away from 100ml just yet.' Edinburgh and Birmingham airports are respectively sixth and seventh busiest in the UK, and are expected to handle more than 27 million passengers this year between them. Airports such as Aberdeen, Bristol, London City, Newcastle and Teesside are expected to make changes soon. But London Heathrow and Manchester are believed to be keeping some old-style X-ray machines in service. At Manchester, Terminal 3 is due to be demolished and therefore it would be wasteful to install new kit. Rather than having different rules for different terminals, the 100ml standard is being kept in place. The European Union and wider Schengen Area also reverted to the 'old' rules at all airports from 1 September 2024, following concerns about the new equipment installed at some airports.
The Independent
07-07-2025
- The Independent
100ml liquids limit scrapped at Birmingham and Edinburgh airport security
Nineteen years after aviation security was tightened with the so-called '100ml liquids rule', two leading UK airports have scrapped the limit. Passengers using Birmingham and Edinburgh can keep all their belongings – including containers holding up to two litres – in a bag through the checkpoint. But travellers are warned that the rules for their return journey are likely to be different. In 2006, British detectives uncovered a terror plot to assemble explosives on board transatlantic aircraft from liquids carried in hand luggage. A limit of 100ml on the size of containers of liquids, aerosols and gels ('LAGs') was brought in hastily in 2006 as 'a temporary measure'. The aim is to replace the traditional X-ray machine at security checkpoints with medical-grade scanners that can analyse the molecular structure of the contents of a passenger 's bag and detect potential threats. A series of government instructions was due to see all major UK airports fitted with the new equipment by June 2024. But some key hubs missed the deadline. At airports that were compliant, within days the 100ml limit was re-imposed because of concerns over the working of the new hardware and software. At the time the Department for Transport (DfT) said it was a 'temporary move' to 'enable further improvements to be made to the new checkpoint systems'. Ahead of the summer rush of 2025, almost every security lane at UK airports is equipped with new kit. Passengers are able to keep liquids and laptops in their cabin bags, potentially accelerating the security check while making it less intrusive. But the 100ml LAGs limit has applied until this month. Now, airports whose security protocols are signed off by the DfT can drop the 100ml limit. A spokesperson for the department said: 'Some airports are rolling out new technology that will allow liquid containers up to two litres to be taken through security in hand luggage. 'As this will be happening at different times at UK airports, passengers should continue to check security requirements with airports before they travel and come prepared with liquids in containers no larger than 100 ml in hand baggage unless advised otherwise.' So far only Birmingham and Edinburgh have been approved. At the West Midlands airport, passengers are urged not to put 'liquids, pastes and gels into plastic bags', being told instead to 'leave them loose in hand luggage'. Gordon Dewar, chief executive of the Scottish capital's airport, said: 'A whole generation of travellers have only known the 100ml rule to be the case, so it really is a momentous day as we become the first airport in Scotland to lift the rule since it was introduced in 2006. 'The change allows more flexibility for passengers to take liquids through security, all while maintaining and improving our high safety levels through the use of 3D technology. But it is important that passengers continue to check with the situation at their return airport as not all airports will be moving away from 100ml just yet.' Edinburgh and Birmingham airports are respectively sixth and seventh busiest in the UK, and are expected to handle more than 27 million passengers this year between them. Airports such as Aberdeen, Bristol, London City, Newcastle and Teesside are expected to make changes soon. But London Heathrow and Manchester are believed to be keeping some old-style X-ray machines in service. Rather than having different rules for different terminals, the 100ml standard is being kept in place. The European Union and wider Schengen Area also reverted to the 'old' rules at all airports from 1 September 2024, following concerns about the new equipment installed at some airports.
