ONE of airport security’s most hated rules may be going away.
Days after the Transportation Security Administration announced that travelers no longer had to take their shoes off at security checkpoints domestically, the end of another guideline was hinted at.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem hinted at the change during a recent summit[/caption]
At the Hill Nation Summit this week, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said that the agency was now looking at another rule to axe: the 3.4 ounce guideline for toiletries in carry-ons.
For years, TSA has followed the 3-1-1 rule for liquids, pastes, gels, aerosols, creams and pastes.
All of said items must be 3.4 ounces or under to be in a carry-on, in one quart bag, with one passenger.
“I will tell you — I mean the liquids — I’m questioning. So that may be the next big announcement is what size your liquids need to be,” Noem said at the summit.
“We’re looking at, you know, our scanners.”
The Hill reported that when host Blake Burman mentioned the shoes-off rule going away last week, the audience erupted in cheers.
“Well, hopefully the future of an airport where I’m looking to go is that you walk in the door with your carry-on suitcase, you walk through a scanner and go right to your flight.” she told the crowd.
Noem laid out her plan to streamline the process, claiming that the goal is to take just “one” minute to get to the gate, the outlet reported.
“It’s not certainly anything we’ll be announcing in the next week or two,” she said after the event.
“But we’re working to see what we can do to make the traveling experience much better and more hospitable for individuals, but also still keep safety standards.”
Just days ago, Noem announced the end of the shoes off rule.
She then referred to the present as the “Golden Age of American travel.”
“Thanks to our cutting-edge technological advancements and multi-layered security approach, we are confident we can implement this change while maintaining the highest security standards,” she said at the time.
Last year, a TSA spokesperson told Travel + Leisure that the rule may not be lifted until 2040 – a stark contrast to Noem’s comments this week.
TSA’s 3-1-1 rule
The Transportation Security Administration regulates the amount of liquids, aerosols, and gels that flyers can bring through airport security with the 3-1-1 liquids rule.
The 3-1-1 rule consists of the following:
Each container of liquid has to be 3.4 ounces or less.
All liquids have to fit in one clear, quart-sized, resealable bag.
Finally, passengers can only bring one bag of liquids each.
“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,” the spokesperson claimed, according to the outlet.
“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.”
The rule has been in place since 2006, when a liquid explosive plot was planned, but was foiled by authorities, according to the TSA.
Now, it has been almost two decades since one of passengers’ most dreaded rule went into effect.
“It is still a process that is protecting people who are traveling on our airlines. But it has to make sense. It has to actually do something to make you safer,” Noem said.
“You should be able just to walk through their screeners — their scanners, you go right to your flight.”
