Airline passengers faced huge queues at Birmingham airport, UK, this morning (Picture: SWNS)
Holidaymakers have been forced to wait in chaotic hour-long queues at Birmingham airport due to changes to the 100ml liquid rule.
Huge queues have formed around the airport, with some claiming they arrived at 4am to get ahead of the long waits.
Bristol airport is now also seeing delays at security following delays in check-in and border control.
Problems were sparked after the government u-turned on a decision to allow passengers to carry up to two litres of liquids in their hand lunggage.
But they have re-introduced the 100ml rule until further notice, leaving airport security scrambling to make sense of the rules.
An inside at Birmingham airport claimed they are already understaffed and are being overworked.
EasyJet even advised passengers to turn up three hours to their flight.
The airline said: ‘We recommend arriving at the airport 3 hours or at least 2 hours before your flight to account for potential delays and facilitate check-in.’
Airports have criticised the reversal of the new liquid rules after new 3D scanners were installed.
Some claim they arrived at 4am to get ahead of the long waits (Picture: SWNS)
Last Friday the Department for Transport unexpectedly announce airports will have to follow the rules once again.
Karen Dee, chief executive of the Airport Operators’ Association, said DfT’s ‘surprise’ announcement ‘was sprung on us with very little time to react’.
She said this ‘created uncertainty for passengers just as airports enter their busiest period’.
‘It has also put airport operators in a challenging position, with very limited time to prepare for the additional staffing and wider resources that this will require, and no clear idea of when this issue will be resolved,’ she added.
‘All airports are investing hundreds of millions of pounds to deliver this huge programme of technology and programme upgrades mandated by Government with equipment and processes to meet their requirements.
roblems were sparked after the government u-turned on a decision to allow passengers to carry up to two litres of liquids in their hand lunggage (Picture: SWNS)
‘We ask that all passengers please bear with us and ensure that liquids are carried in containers no larger than 100ml, until advised otherwise.’
Birmingham Airport’s CEO Mr Barton appeared to blame passengers for the delays by not complying with the baggage rules.
‘A non-compliant bag with liquids over 100ml can add up to 20 minutes to each passenger’s journey through security,’ he said.
Mr Barton told the BBC: ‘Since opening our new security area, and despite being one of the first UK airports to comply, we have been limited on the use of our multi-million-pound equipment due to an outstanding regulatory restriction meaning we had to limit liquids to 100ml.
‘Despite the 100ml rule still being in place, we continually have non-compliant bags with liquids over the allowance which have led to inefficiencies of our equipment and resulted in extended queuing time for customers.
‘It is now imperative that all customers comply with the nationwide rule to ensure a smoother and simpler transition through the airport.’
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.