Please stick to 100ml! Airport says it is ‘imperative’ holidaymakers follow reintroduced liquid limits after government U-turn – as it faces growing pressure over long queues which insiders warn could last for ‘months’

Birmingham Airport Bosses have blamed the chaotic long queues that infuriated passengers last week on a government U-turn on the liquid limit for hand luggage.

The Department of Transport quietly reintroduced the rule across the country on Sunday morning prevents people from carrying liquids of more than 100 ml.

Airport bosses say it is ‘imperative’ that holidaymakers stick to the limit as it is under intense pressure due to security delays that saw queues at the entrance last for up to two hours yesterday.

Insiders claim queues can last for months and the airport is ‘understaffed’, leaving workers ‘overworked’ and ‘struggling’.

Nick Barton, CEO of Birmingham Airport just warned that ‘one piece of non-compliant baggage could take up to 20 minutes for each passenger to pass through security’.

Passengers at Birmingham Airport were stuck in lines that snaked outside the entrance

Long queues outside Birmingham Airport are seen in a video posted on X on Sunday

The airport thought officials would lift the limit from June 1 after Covid postponed the original deadline.

It had ‘designed and funded’ a new, privately funded £60 million security checkpoint hall, equipped with scanners that can check larger bottles.

But the DfT said on Friday that the 100ml limit would be ‘temporarily reintroduced’ from Sunday, amid concerns over whether the new technology was safe enough, reported the Telegraph.

Mr Barton said the airport sees non-compliant bags all the time, despite legal limits.

‘Since the opening of our new security area, and despite being one of the first UK airports to comply, we have been restricted from using our multi-million pound equipment due to an outstanding legal restriction, meaning we have had to restrict liquids to 100 ml. he said to the BBC.

‘Despite the 100ml rule still being in place, we continue to have non-compliant bags of liquids that exceed the permitted quantity, which has led to inefficiencies in our equipment and longer queues for customers.

‘It is now imperative that all customers adhere to the national rule to ensure a smoother and easier transition through the airport.’

The disruptions at Birmingham Airporty started on Thursday when long queues were caused by confusion over new rules for 100ml liquids and 3D baggage scanners.

Furious passengers waited hours to get through security after the airport installed new technology that allows people to travel with liquids of up to two liters in their suitcases.

An unnamed employee said it BirminghamLive that passengers regularly complain to him about missed or delayed flights and say the situation is ‘very bad’.

The video was taken of the security queue at 5.18am on Sunday

By the time the passengers who posted the video made it through security, their flight was making its final boarding

The disruptions began on Thursday when long queues formed due to confusion over new rules for 100ml liquids and 3D baggage scanners

Furious passengers have waited hours to get through security after the airport installed new technology that allows people to travel with liquids up to two liters in their suitcases

Frustrated passengers face hours-long queues as they fight their way through airport security

Huge queues have been seen outside the terminal, snaking around the side of the building

The problem apparently stems from staff shortages and the time it has taken to complete the upgrade of the new security hall, with the source adding that the airport should have deployed additional security staff to combat these issues.

How 3D scanners will spell the end for 100ml liquid limits

Under current rules on liquids, flyers are only allowed to take 100ml containers in hand luggage.

This year, however, passengers will be able to carry 330 ml (2 liter) containers through security at certain airports.

Like the scanners used in hospitals, the new CT scanners create high-resolution 3D images, allowing luggage to be precisely checked without having to remove items from it, speeding up the security process.

It means travelers can leave liquids, laptops and electronics in their luggage as they pass through security.

Baggage rules will still vary between different airlines, so passengers are urged to check before traveling.

In response, airport bosses said there is an “ongoing recruitment campaign for security officers” and added that missed or delayed flights are “not necessarily” their fault.

The problems started on Thursday, with long queues as new rules on carrying liquids caused confusion among passengers.

The chaos had not subsided on Friday and last weekend people showed up three hours early for their flights but were still stuck in long lines at security.

Birmingham Airport met a deadline to install new 3D baggage scanners at the start of this month, but officials at the West Midlands hub decided to combine both the old and new rules for carrying liquids ‘until further notice’.

The airport said the previous 100ml limits still apply, but passengers may carry these in their carry-on luggage rather than taking them out to be screened separately in clear bags.

In addition to the security delays due to the new technology, “ongoing construction work on site” contributed to the “usually busy morning” as customers waited in “long and skinny queues”, the airport added.

Birmingham Airport has since installed ‘liquid stations’ at all entrances, where staff will help passengers remove liquids over 100ml from their hand luggage before entering security.

“The outside queues seen today are from ‘liquid checkpoints’,” an airport spokesperson said.

‘With these extra checks we have seen that a large proportion of customers are still arriving with liquids over 100ml in their bag and these unfortunately need to be removed and thrown away. Containers with a capacity of more than 100 ml are permitted, but must be completely empty. Thanks to these additional checks, our safety flow has been constant today. We welcome and appreciate our passengers’ cooperation in removing oversized liquids from their carry-on luggage.

‘It is now more necessary than ever that customers adhere to the 100ml rule. This additional layer of control threatens to slow down the safety process without the support of passengers.

‘We have been continuously planning for this transition from our old security zone to our new one, taking into account the impact of the construction work, new equipment and the unknown queues. Approximately one million passengers use our airport every month, the majority of whom have good experiences despite the ongoing construction work.’