Passengers at EU Airports Prohibited from Carrying Over 100ml of Liquids in Cabin Luggage Starting September 1
Key Takeaways
1. The EU has decided to restrict passengers from carrying more than 100ml of liquids in their cabin luggage.
2. ACI Europe says the new rule will be unpopular with both passengers and airports.
3. Airports with C3 scanners have had the 100ml restrictions relaxed.
A newly updated EU regulation has reintroduced restrictions on passengers traveling with European airlines.
Starting September 1, 2024, passengers must limit liquids in their cabin baggage to a maximum of 100ml, including aerosol and gel containers.
The news was commented on in a press release by Airports Council International (ACI) Europe, which noted that the new measure will impact both passengers and airports.
New Measure to Negatively Impact Passengers’ Travel Experience & Airports’ Investments
ACI Europe has called on the EU Commission and Member States to establish a roadmap with set goals for the measure, which they consider temporary.
The new restriction affects all airports that had installed C3 scanners, the most advanced detection devices. Until now, these scanners allowed passengers to carry liquids without restriction and keep them alongside electronic devices, such as laptops.
ACI expects that the new restriction will result in significant operational strain and negatively impact the passenger experience and airports that have deployed this technology, considering that purchasing C3 scanners can cost almost eight times more than regular machines, with maintenance costs four times higher.
"However, the fact remains that those airports which have been early adopters of this new technology are being heavily penalized both operationally and financially. They had taken the decision to invest and deploy C3 scanners in good faith, based on the EU having greenlighted this equipment without any restrictions attached."
-Olivier Jankovec, ACI EUROPE Director General
He also urged that moving forward, the EU certification system must provide the necessary “legal certainty”.
Many EU Countries Have Deployed C3 Scanners
Some airports in Germany, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Malta have deployed C3 scanners, while in the UK, a total of six smaller airports have installed the devices. All of these UK airports are required to implement the new liquid rule.
Like the EU, British authorities did not have a specific roadmap for the new rule introduced.
"This temporary move is to enable further improvements to be made to the new checkpoint systems and will only affect a small number of passengers."
-DfT Spokesperson
UK airports were required by the government to deploy the new scanners by June 1, 2024, but this was later postponed for another year due to many UK airports, including the largest and busiest, not having deployed C3 scanners in time.