New rule coming on liquids on planes

[SheilaNC]

See new article in USA Today Travel section:

http://www.usatoday.com/travel/flights/2006-09-25-airlines-liquids_x.htm

[poetic license]

... So when I finally DID get to it, here is the article I found. Hope this helps everyone else. :)

 

US SET TO RELAX LIQUIDS BAN ON AIRLINERS

 

WASHINGTON (AP) — The government is partially lifting its ban against carrying liquids and gels onto airliners, instituted after a plot to bomb jets flying into the United States was foiled, an administration official said Monday.

A Homeland Security Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity because the announcement had not yet been made, said that most liquids and gels that air travelers purchase in secure areas of airports will now be allowed on planes.

That means that after passengers go through airport security checkpoints, they can purchase liquids at airport stores and take them onto their planes, said the official. Announcement of the new rules was being made at an 11 a.m. ET news conference at Reagan National Airport. The Transportation Security Administration said only that it planned to announce "refinements to security measures."

The tougher airport screening procedures were put in place in August after British police broke up a terrorist plot to assemble and detonate bombs using liquid explosives on airliners crossing the Atlantic Ocean from Britain to the U.S.

At the time, the Homeland Security Department briefly raised the threat level to "red," the highest level, for flights bound to the United States from Britain. All other flights were at "orange" and will remain at orange, the second-highest level, for now.

New procedures also were being announced for products like lip gloss and hand lotion that passengers bring to the airport. Previously, those liquids have been confiscated at security checkpoints. Now, the official said, those products will be put in clear plastic bags at the checkpoint, screened and returned to the passenger if they pass screening.

Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Posted 9/25/2006 8:22 AM ET USA TODAY

[Longboysfan]

So it look like you should be able to buy in the airport and take it to the plane.

[poetic license]

Yes, if you are flying OUTBOUND from the USA.

 

HOWEVER

 

If you are flying FROM the UK TO the USA, the ban is still in place. A nightmare for those doing a roundtrip between these two countries.

[C 2 C]

I think there is still a problem if you have a connecting flight. That bottle of your favorite fire water might still make someone else happy when you switch airplanes.:(

[poetic license]

I think there is still a problem if you have a connecting flight. That bottle of your favorite fire water might still make someone else happy when you switch airplanes.:(

 

Arno, can you explain this? How will it affect connecting flights?

[C 2 C]

Arno, can you explain this? How will it affect connecting flights?

From what I undersatnd you may have to go through security again before you board the second flight. Since you did not purchase the liquids after passing through security there may be a problem depending on the layout of the airport.

[JuneauWhatIMean]

I've never once had to go through security a second time for a connecting flight. Have you had to do this, Arno?

[C 2 C]

I've never once had to go through security a second time for a connecting flight. Have you had to do this, Arno?

Yes. In Copenhagen and somewhere else????

In Schiphol for example there is security screening for each gate just prior to boarding.

I'm flying through Paris and I don't know the setup there.

[JuneauWhatIMean]

Oh, I see. I was only thinking in terms of domestic flights. Silly, self-centered, American me. :o

[Seabee]

Wish I had a concession selliong toothpaste at an airport ... :D :D

[GramaFran]

We just flew through London and after security in SFO we had to go through another gate security in London (more strict there than here) I was not carrying any liquids so no problem. also for those who think about baggage handlers with sticky fingers, we used cable ties and our liquor was still in our bags. also security had not open them either.

francine

[shoreless]

I read one article that said you'd be able to have gels and lotions (but not liquids except for the previously allowed ones), but no container could be more than three ounces, and all of the containers have to fit "comfortably" in one 1-qt transparent ziploc bag, which has to go through security separately from everything else! The article even showed a picture of this "comfortably full" ziploc bag, which had some of those sample size shampoos, etc. that you can buy; it didn't say if these things had to be in their original containers or if the generic little plastic bottles you buy to fill from larger sizes would be ok. I don't know who dreams up these things, but they have supposedly decided that three ounces of anything isn't enough to make a bomb with.

 

I guess at the checkpoint you now need one bin for shoes, one for purse and jacket, one for laptop, and one for ziploc bag -- all of which you have to gather up and repack or put back on after the checkpoint. Are the checkers really going to stop and examine each bottle in the ziploc bag? Good grief!

[poetic license]

Thankfully, I've never had to go through security again for a connecting flight in the US. The new 'relaxed' rules for liquids and gels apply only to flights originating at US airports ... so maybe we'll be lucky and never encounter this problem with a connecting flight that requires us to re-screen through security.

 

As far as Paris goes, it is CHAOS. At CDG, you will disembark often times mid-field (think of the 50's, and airline stairs!) only to walk a 100 or so yards to shuttle buses, which then take you to the terminal where you get in line for customs ... and of course, a security screening. Then you go out the same door you came in, get on another bus, and disembark at the terminal you are flying from... pay attention, or you could miss your bus stop. There are no announcements for terminal stops, you have to be on top of it. It is a crazy system, and it was extremely inefficient and time-consuming. Although we had (theoretically) over an hour and a half between our flight into CDG and our connecting flight, we were late getting to the gate for our flight. If our connecting flight plane hadn't been so large and so full, we would have missed it entirely! Fortunately, they were still boarding the last of the pax when we arrived, running, from the place where the shuttle bus dropped us. We won't ever fly a route that connects in Paris again.

 

Nicki

[SheilaNC]

We had a similar experience as Nicki compounded by the posting of the wrong gate, necessitating our running around with carry-on luggage in hand searching for the correct gate. We had more than 2 hours between flights and almost missed ours. Funny thing was that on the way home we were assigned to a different CDG terminal and it was a piece of cake. But we'll never voluntarily fly through CDG again.