“Exciting” and “Heathrow” rarely go in the same sentence, but the airport has today announced a milestone that passengers will no doubt appreciate.
In this post:
Heathrow Airport completes installation of new scanners
Heathrow Airport has just completed a £1 billion tech upgrade, intended to deliver faster and smoother security. The biggest implication here is that the traditional 100ml liquids restriction has been lifted across all four terminals (T2, T3, T4, T5).
Now passengers can travel with liquids of up to two liters in their carry-on bags. There’s no need to remove liquids or electronics from bags. This move is also expected to save around 16 million plastic bags per year, since previously liquids had to be placed in them.
Heathrow is now the largest airport in the world to have fully rolled out next generation CT security scanners, and by connection, to not have a 100ml restriction on liquids. These updated scanners are capable of servicing thousands of passengers per hour with significantly greater efficiency, while maintaining high safety and security standards.
For context, the UK started relaxing liquids restrictions back in 2024. This had some ups and downs, but the idea was that if a checkpoint had the next generation scanners, then the liquids restrictions didn’t apply. As you’d expect, that can be sort of tough to plan around, so it wasn’t exactly an ideal system.
It’s fantastic to see the airport now complete this rollout, so passengers know exactly what to expect. To state the obvious, just keep in mind that if you’re connecting elsewhere and have to clear security, then the 100ml restriction could still apply, so be prepared for that.
When will we see a similar move in the United States?
Here in the United States, we of course still have the 100ml restriction for liquids in carry-on bags. When could that change? Well, in 2024, under the Biden administration, a TSA spokesperson indicated that restrictions would likely remain in place until 2040, which is the timeline with which next generation scanners are expected to be rolled out:
“TSA is still deploying Computed Tomography (CT) units that are capable of screening larger sizes of liquids, however the agency will not be able to change the current 3-1-1 liquids rule for some time to come, because there are about 2,000 screening lanes in about 430 airports. We are anticipating that it may not be until 2040 that we have CT units fully deployed across the nation and have the capability of changing the requirement across the system.”
That being said, under the Trump administration, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has indicated that this policy might be revisited sooner than that. In an interview, Noem said “the day I walked in the door, I started questioning everything TSA does,” adding that “I will tell you, I mean, the liquids I am questioning.” She stated that “maybe the next big announcement is what size your liquids need to be,” and that they’re “looking at it.”
So we’ll see if anything comes of that. The Trump administration certainly goes through a lot of headlines, but whether something actually becomes of a situation is a different story…
Bottom line
Heathrow Airport has completed installation of new security scanners, and as a result, has also fully lifted the 100ml liquids restrictions for carry-on bags. Travelers can now take liquids of up to two liters, and can leave them in their bag, along with electronics.
This is fantastic news, as Heathrow is now the biggest airport in the world to have such a policy. Here’s to hoping we see similar changes in the United States sooner rather than later.
What do you make of this Heathrow Airport milestone?
The most dangerous person at the airport, hands down, is the person getting plowed at the airport bar and hitting their vape like it's got oxygen inside of it. It ain't gotta nothing to do with toiletry or water bottles.
Airport businesses will lobby to not allow this change in the us in order to continue selling $8 water bottles
You hit the nail on the head. It's of course a ridiculous rule. What's making travel unsafe now? Unhinged drunks that get plastered at an airport bar. If anything, have a two drink maximum but again we come back to Luke's overall point.
I hate that you are right.
Considering Heathrow was the strictest airport I've ever been to with liquids - and the ensuing lines for secondary baggage inspection that would build up - this is actually a big deal.
I agree - this is a big deal for those of us who use LHR regularly. LHR security has always been torturous, and those secondary inspections would often take more than 45 mins to clear, usually for the most minor of infractions. The inanity of pulling economy class amenity kits apart to take the tiny toothpastes out never ceased to amaze me.
Keep in mind that currently, Heathrow is the only non-preclearance airport that's approved for One-Stop Security for seamless connections in the US. (This is done pursuant to an agreement where the US government formally recognizes the security measures at Heathrow.)
Coupled with that, what this newest change means is that, for instance, passengers who depart from Heathrow and have a connection at DFW, will be able to bring large liquids into the sterile area...
Keep in mind that currently, Heathrow is the only non-preclearance airport that's approved for One-Stop Security for seamless connections in the US. (This is done pursuant to an agreement where the US government formally recognizes the security measures at Heathrow.)
Coupled with that, what this newest change means is that, for instance, passengers who depart from Heathrow and have a connection at DFW, will be able to bring large liquids into the sterile area in DFW and onto their connecting flights. I wonder if TSA will take note of this when deciding whether to change their policy domestically. (Coincidentally enough, the end of the shoe carnival came shortly before One-Stop Security was initiated. I wonder why?)
The way Kirsty Neom made her statement sounds more like they might relax standards rather than actually roll out new scanners..
Or that an idea popped into her head and she said it out loud without any plan or intent to follow through.