The Transportation Security Administration has been shaking up its security screening policy at airports, last week ending a decades-old requirement to remove shoes.
Now, Kristi Noem, the homeland security secretary, is fueling growing speculation that limits on liquids could be axed next. For nearly two decades, the T.S.A. has restricted the quantities of liquids that travelers can bring through airport security checkpoints.
At a political conference hosted by The Hill and NewsNation in Washington on Wednesday, she addressed the possibility directly, saying that she was “questioning” the longstanding policy.
“So that may be the next big announcement, is what size your liquids need to be,” Ms. Noem said. “We have put in place in T.S.A. a multilayered screening process that allows us to change some of how we do security and screening.”
But how soon could liquid limits be lifted and what would this measure take? We spoke to several security screening experts to learn more.
What is the 3-1-1 liquids rule and why does it exist?
Travelers bringing carry-on luggage are limited to liquids, aerosols and gels in quantities of less than 3.4 ounces, or 100 milliliters, that fit in one clear, quart-size bag. This T.S.A. policy, known as the 3-1-1 rule, has been in place since 2006, following a terrorist plot to detonate liquid explosives, smuggled in soda bottles, aboard multiple flights traveling from Heathrow Airport in London to the United States and Canada. While the plot was foiled by the British authorities, the threat reverberated worldwide, prompting tighter security screening.
The T.S.A. initially banned all liquids from carry-on baggage, then amended its policy with the 3-1-1 rule, which still leaves most travelers ditching their water bottles at checkpoints.
All travelers, regardless of whether they are enrolled in expedited screening programs, follow the 3-1-1 rule. However, while T.S.A. PreCheck travelers can keep their liquids in their luggage, the policy for all other travelers varies depending on what imaging technology is deployed at the airport.
What would it take for the liquids rule to end?
Airports have been gradually rolling out advanced X-ray scanners called computed tomography, or CT, machines, which can identify liquids in bags and detect whether they are explosives. These machines aren’t installed at every airport in the country.
“Smaller airports don’t have them,” said Caleb Harmon-Marshall, a former T.S.A. officer with a travel newsletter called Gate Access. “A key indication of whether this is going to be implemented nationwide is when all airports get CT machines.”
The T.S.A. and D.H.S. declined to provide further details about technology at airports.
When could this happen?
It could be years away. A T.S.A. spokesperson told Travel + Leisure last year that a rule allowing larger liquids in carry-ons could take until 2040 to put in place because it would need many more CT machines for the large number of airports. The spokesperson said there were about 2,000 screening lanes in about 430 airports.
Such a shift would also require “dramatic changes to the security protocols that currently exist,” said Keith Jeffries, a vice president of K2 Security Screening Group, which specializes in airports. T.S.A. officers would need more specialized training in spotting dangerous liquids, he added.
Are larger liquid amounts allowed at airports in other countries?
At Edinburgh Airport in Scotland and Birmingham Airport in England, travelers can bring as much as two liters of liquid in carry-on luggage.
A handful of other airports, including some in Britain, still restrict the amount of liquids, but allow them to be kept in baggage during screening.
“Travelers would really prefer that airport security screening were more consistent airport to airport,” said Henry Harteveldt, a travel industry analyst for Atmosphere Research Group. But he emphasized that countries have their own threat assessments.
“Airport security is part of a broader national security program and some countries may feel there are fewer threats than others,” he said.
Would ending the 3-1-1 rule make air travel more dangerous?
While announcing the shoes-on policy last week, Ms. Noem emphasized T.S.A.’s layered security approach. This includes government intelligence, canine units, agency officers and advanced screening equipment.
That approach is “key to ensuring the continued safety of travelers in the wake of loosened liquid restrictions,” said Nathan Dula, security marketing manager at Garrett Metal Detectors, a company specializing in walk-through and hand-held metal detectors used at airports.
While easing unpopular security policies may be celebrated by passengers, experts stressed that these decisions should not come at the expense of aviation security. Systems need to be in place to counteract any potential increase in risk, Mr. Dula said.
“The question airports must ask is how to guarantee even better passenger convenience without taking a step backward in security effectiveness,” Mr. Jeffries said.
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Christine Chung is a Times reporter covering airlines and consumer travel.
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