Airport hand luggage liquid limits: Jet2 warns UK will be ‘world leader in queues and chaos’ unless new scanners deadline delayed

Edinburgh among airports requesting extension to UK Government’s June 1 deployment directive to speed up security

One of Scotland’s biggest airlines has warned the UK faces becoming a “world leader in queues and chaos” unless a deadline for introducing new airport scanners to speed up security is extended, amid warnings of more disruption for travellers this summer.

Jet2 urged the move to avert “another year of chaos in the aviation industry” because it said supply and installation problems meant airports were not ready.

Edinburgh Airport – Scotland’s busiest – said it had requested the June 1 cut-off date be delayed until the end of the year, but was confident the “vast majority” of its passengers would be using the new machines by the summer peak.

The new scanners will ease restrictions on liquids in hand luggage. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

However, the airport has admitted that a separate issue of baggage delays caused by luggage not being loaded onto Edinburgh-bound connecting flights from hub airports were likely to continue this summer.

The security upgrades announced by the UK Government in 2022 for main airports involve new hand luggage scanners so passengers won’t have to take equipment like laptops out of their cases and can carry two litre containers of liquids, while body scanners will replace archway metal detectors for everyone.

A 100ml liquids limit has been in place since 2006 following a foiled terrorist plot. But the prospect of only some airports operating the new scanners from June has also prompted concerns about possible passenger confusion over the rules.

Steve Heapy, chief executive of Jet2, which will operate more than 200 flights on some 60 routes from Scotland this summer, said: "The UK Government has said it wants to become a world leader in aviation security. The only thing we will become a world leader in is queues and chaos.”

Jet2 chief executive Steve Heapy addresses the Scottish Passenger Agents Association dinner in Glasgow on February 22 beside SPAA president Jacqueline Dobson. (Photo by SPAA)

He told the Scottish Passenger Agents Association’s (SPAA) annual dinner in Glasgow: "Airports are not ready and it’s not their fault. Airport scanners are over £1 million each and are only obtainable from two or three suppliers, and there are huge supply problems.

"They weigh several tonnes each and if security is not on the ground floor, you probably need to do strengthening of floors, which costs a lot of money.”

Mr Heapy said the size of the scanners meant some airports would have to rebuild their security halls or re-locate them.

He said: "We are headed for a situation where the scanners will not be in place in the middle of the year. The UK Government has so far not committed to putting the deadline back.

"We are asking for this deadline to be put back so we don’t have another year of chaos in the aviation industry. We cannot have this situation … we will see lots of issues at airports.”

Edinburgh Airport chief executive Gordon Dewar said the new scanners, which are already in use in airports such as London City and Amsterdam, would make a “huge difference”.

He told the airport’s consultative committee: “We have requested a delay to the end of the year, but we are confident the vast majority of our customers will experience that technology by the peak of summer.

"We are really confident because we've been working for four years on this technology, so that when we implement it, it's going to work well … so we don't have queues coming out the door.

"I think there's going to be very few of the big airports that are going to be fully compliant by June 1, but I'm confident we're on track to get everything fully in by the end of the year.”

However, Mr Dewar added: "The biggest issue is there is going to be a period of many months where at least one end of your route doesn't have it, or half the airport has it and the other doesn't, so explaining to customers what to expect and how to prepare is the hard part.

“I think the message will be – assume the old technology.”

Edinburgh Airport: How to avoid being caught up in a threatened third summer of baggage disruption

AGS Airports, which runs Glasgow and Aberdeen, declined to say if it had asked for an extension. Its spokesperson said only: “We are continuing to work with the UK Department for Transport (DfT) on the roll-out of next generation security checkpoint scanners.”

The DfT said it “may consider allowing airports to have slightly longer” to fully deploy the new scanners "to ensure that the new screening arrangements operate effectively”.

However, “for security reasons”, it would not say which airports would be ready and which had requested exemptions.

Its spokesperson said: “The UK has some of the most robust aviation security measures in the world. Airports are responsible for upgrading their security equipment and this cutting-edge technology will enhance security and boost the passenger experience.

“We are in regular contact with airports as they move towards the June deadline for upgrading their screening equipment and processes.”

A spokesperson for Heathrow, the UK’s busiest airport and a key hub for connecting flights to and from Scotland, said: “We are focused on keeping the operation flowing and a smooth security experience for passengers while the transition takes place.”

Graham Simpson, the Scottish Conservatives’ transport spokesperson and co-convener of the Scottish Parliament’s cross-party aviation group, said: “This technology is vital to make travel smoother and easier. A pragmatic approach is required to ensure that our airports can install it when it is ready.

"Calls for a slight delay should be considered. Our airports are bouncing back following a grim period and this technology can only help that.”

SPAA president Jacqueline Dobson said: “We back our partners in the airline sector who are calling for the summer deadline to be extended to allow for obtaining scanners and the necessary structural engineering to accommodate them.

“We’d go a step further and suggest that many of these logistical issues could have been avoided if there had been more consultation about these plans with the aviation sector.”