
New airport security upgrade could ease liquid restrictions — but there's a problem
However, this optimism is tempered by a significant security concern: more than a third of all airports across the country have yet to upgrade their screening systems to reliably detect liquid explosives.
While the inconvenience of discarding beverages and toiletries before security is a common frustration, the underlying challenge lies in differentiating innocuous items like hair gel from potentially lethal substances.
This threat nearly materialised in 2006, when British authorities foiled a plot to detonate homemade chemical mixtures, disguised in sports drink bottles, aboard airliners.
Security experts continue to express concern over the vulnerabilities exposed by that foiled attack.
Recent remarks by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem ignited the prospect for passengers of one day being able to fly with more than 3 ounces of their shampoos and gels, and avoiding the need to dispose of recently purchased drinks.
'The liquids, I'm questioning. So that may be the next big announcement, is what size your liquids need to be,' Noem said. 'We have put in place in TSA a multilayered screening process that allows us to change some of how we do security and screening so it's still as safe.'
A Transportation Security Administration spokesperson said Noem and the agency 'are constantly looking for ways to enhance security, and improve the travel experience for the public.'
New liquids rules aren't ready
Any changes will come through the same official channels that TSA used to announce this month that travelers can keep their shoes on at checkpoints.
That change offers relief from a rule adopted after 'shoe bomber' Richard Reid's failed attempt to take down a flight from Paris to Miami in late 2001 with a small explosive device hidden in his footwear.
The limits on liquids were triggered by the 2006 UK arrests. Three ringleaders were eventually convicted.
A massive surveillance operation
Prosecutors told the jury in that case that authorities uncovered the plot after secretly searching the luggage of a man who was on their radar for security concerns after he returned from Pakistan and found the unusual combination of the Tang powdered soft drink and a large number of batteries, according to the BBC.
That triggered the surveillance operation that eventually grew to include more than 200 officers.
Agents discovered what appeared to be a bomb factory in a London apartment where odd devices were being constructed out of drink bottles. The plot didn't make sense until authorities discovered that the men were researching flight timetables and realised they were only trying to make an explosive big enough to rip a hole in a plane.
The meaning of coded emails to contacts in Pakistan only became clear after the arrests, when authorities realised that the quantities of Calvin Klein aftershave being discussed in messages matched the amount of hydrogen peroxide the conspirators had purchased.
Longstanding liquid restrictions
Ever since then, the TSA and authorities in other countries have limited carry-on liquids and gels to 3.4 ounces (100 milliliters) because officials believe that amount is too small to create an explosion capable of taking down a plane. The restriction covered all types of liquids, because X-ray machines at checkpoints couldn't differentiate between explosive and harmless ones.
The United Kingdom was planning to ease its restrictions last year to allow people to carry up to 2 liters (about half a gallon) of liquid, but that was delayed because several major airports still didn't have the new scanners that use computed tomography, commonly known as a CT scan, to produce clearer images.
Advanced new screening machines
The new machines allow screeners to switch between two-dimensional and three-dimensional images and turn them to see what may be lurking, said Johnny Jones, secretary treasurer of the chapter of the American Federation of Government Employees that represents TSA workers.
'It's just a totally life-changing situation,' said Jones, who has worked as a screener since the agency was created.
'It's a difference of being able to see something that would have been hidden by something that you can now see clear as day with the new technology. It eliminates the guesswork.'
Many airports still use the old tech
The problem is that only 255 of the 432 airports across the United States have new CT scanners installed, the interim head of the TSA told Congress this spring. The biggest airports got them first, but they are not expected to be everywhere until 2043.
It's possible that a change in carry-on liquid policy could be implemented just at the biggest airports, but that could lead to confusion if travelers, are, say, allowed to bring full bottles on departure only to have them confiscated when they return.
The scanners cost more than $2 million apiece, and they are so much bigger than the old X-ray machines that sometimes floors must be reinforced and checkpoints have to be redesigned.
'I think you need to hold off till we get more systems deployed. I think this one's a little too early,' said Jeff Price, who teaches aviation security at Metropolitan State University of Denver and has co-authored books on the subject.
'The keep your shoes on — I can get on board with that provided we continue to do random screenings. But the liquids, I think we're too early on that. There's other layers of security. Yeah, I know that. But not too many of them that prevent this type of attack.'
In the past the inspector general of the Department of Homeland Security has highlighted vulnerabilities in TSA screening that can allow things to slip through undetected.
A 2015 report found that TSA officers failed 95 per cent of the time to detect weapons or explosive material carried by undercover inspectors.
But Jones defended the work of the screeners he represents, noting that since the agency's creation, no plane has failed to reach its destination because of something that was missed.
'Nothing large has been able to make it through our system since we've taken over screening. We've protected the skies for 22 years,' Jones said. 'Even if you have a slight miss, it doesn't necessarily mean anything is going to happen on the plane.'
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Mike Johnson would have ‘great pause' about a Ghislaine Maxwell pardon
The US House speaker, Mike Johnson, said on Sunday he would have 'great pause' about granting a pardon or commutation to Ghislaine Maxwell while another House Republican said it should be considered as part of an effort to obtain more information about Jeffrey Epstein's crimes. Donald Trump and his allies, including Johnson, have been under immense pressure to disclose more information about Epstein for weeks, especially amid scrutiny over the extent of Trump's relationship with Epstein. The splits over what to do with Maxwell illustrate the complicated challenge posed by the scandal for Trump, his Maga base and the broader Republican party. Johnson weighed in on the possibility of a pardon after Todd Blanche, the deputy attorney general, met with Maxwell, who is serving a 20 year prison sentence for sex trafficking, over two days last week. The one-time British socialite was Epstein's close confidante for years and his partner-in-crime. Epstein killed himself in jail in 2019. The House speaker was asked about the possibility of a pardon by Kristen Welker during an appearance on NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday. 'If you're asking my opinion, I think 20 years was a pittance. I think she should have a life sentence at least. I mean, think of all these unspeakable crimes,' he said. 'It's hard to put into words how evil this was, and that she orchestrated it and was a big part of it, at least under the criminal sanction, I think is an unforgivable thing. So again, not my decision, but I have great pause about that, as any reasonable person would.' Pressed directly on whether he favored a pardon, Johnson deferred to Trump. 'Obviously that's a decision of the president. He said he had not adequately considered that. I won't get it in front of him. That's not my lane,' he said. Representative Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican who has been pushing for disclosure of more Epstein information, said a pardon should be on the table for Maxwell. 'That would be up to the president. But if she has information that could help us, then I think she should testify. Let's get that out there. And whatever they need to do to compel that testimony, as long as it's truthful, I would be in favor of,' he told Welker on Meet the Press. Representative Ro Khanna, a California Democrat who has joined Massie's effort to release more information, said he did not support a pardon for Maxwell, who was charged with perjury in connection to a civil deposition in 2016 (prosecutors did not move forward with those charges once they obtained her sex-trafficking conviction.) 'I'm concerned that the deputy attorney general Todd Blanche is meeting with her supposedly one-on-one. Look, I agree with Congressman Massie that she should testify. But she's been indicted twice on perjury. This is why we need the files. This is why we need independent evidence,' he said on Meet the Press. After Trump pledged to disclose more information about Epstein on the campaign trail, the justice department said earlier this month it had determined Epstein did not have a 'client list' and did not blackmail anyone. Johnson adjourned the US House of Representatives early last week to avoid a vote on releasing Epstein files. He said on Sunday he favored 'maximum disclosure'. During his appearance on Meet the Press, he defended that decision, saying the legislation being pushed by Massie and Khanna would require the release of uncorroborated information and could harm the victims of Epstein and Maxwell's crimes. 'You have to protect innocent people's names and reputations whose names might be, as you noted at the outset of the program, intertwined into all these files,' he said. 'These are minors in many cases who were subjected to unspeakable crimes, abject evil. They've already suffered great harm. We do not need their names being unmasked.' That kind of argument is a 'straw man' Massie said on Sunday. 'Ro and I carefully crafted this legislation so that the victims' names will be redacted and that no child pornography will be released. So they're hiding behind that,' he said. Khanna also pushed back on the idea that releasing the information could damage reputations. 'Different people feel that the rich and the powerful have been not held accountable, that they have a different set of rules, and that there may be government officials involved,' he said. 'They're going to be able to distinguish between someone who got a grant for Jeffrey Epstein to do cancer research versus rich and powerful men who were abusing underage girls.'


Telegraph
2 hours ago
- Telegraph
Russian Navy Day parade cancelled for ‘security reasons'
Russia's annual Navy Day parade has been cancelled for 'security reasons'. The large-scale, televised parade, due to take place on Sunday, usually features a flotilla of warships and military vessels sailing down the Neva River and is attended by Vladimir Putin, the Russian president. Russia has not released the specifics of the threat or concern, but Ukrainian drones targeted St Petersburg on Sunday, where the parade was due to take place, forcing the airport to close for five hours. Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, said: '[The cancellation] has to do with the general situation. Security reasons are of utmost importance.' It is the first time the parade has been cancelled since its inception in 2017, according to state media. In 2024, Russia suspected Ukraine would target the parade, which prompted organisers to reduce the scale of the procession. Putin arrived at the city's historic naval headquarters on Sunday by patrol speed boat, from where he followed drills involving more than 150 vessels and 15,000 military personnel in the Pacific and Arctic Oceans and Baltic and Caspian Seas. 'Today, we are marking this holiday in a working setting, we are inspecting the combat readiness of the fleet,' Putin said in a video address. The parade was meant to be the highlight of Russia's Navy Day, which falls on the last Sunday of July each year and honours the country's sailors. The Russian Defence Ministry announced on Sunday that air defence units downed 291 Ukrainian fixed-wing drones, below a record 524 drones downed in attacks on May 7, ahead of Russia's Victory Day parade on May 9. A woman was injured by falling debris, on Sunday, when 10 drones were downed in the Leningrad region surrounding St Petersburg, Alexander Drozdenko, its governor, said. Pulkovo airport was closed during the attack, with 57 flights delayed and 22 diverted to other airports. It resumed operations later on Sunday.


The Guardian
3 hours ago
- The Guardian
Mike Johnson would have ‘great pause' about a Ghislaine Maxwell pardon
The US House speaker, Mike Johnson, said on Sunday he would have 'great pause' about granting a pardon or commutation to Ghislaine Maxwell while another House Republican said it should be considered as part of an effort to obtain more information about Jeffrey Epstein's crimes. Donald Trump and his allies, including Johnson, have been under immense pressure to disclose more information about Epstein for weeks, especially amid scrutiny over the extent of Trump's relationship with Epstein. The splits over what to do with Maxwell illustrate the complicated challenge posed by the scandal for Trump, his Maga base and the broader Republican party. Johnson weighed in on the possibility of a pardon after Todd Blanche, the deputy attorney general, met with Maxwell, who is serving a 20 year prison sentence for sex trafficking, over two days last week. The one-time British socialite was Epstein's close confidante for years and his partner-in-crime. Epstein killed himself in jail in 2019. The House speaker was asked about the possibility of a pardon by Kristen Welker during an appearance on NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday. 'If you're asking my opinion, I think 20 years was a pittance. I think she should have a life sentence at least. I mean, think of all these unspeakable crimes,' he said. 'It's hard to put into words how evil this was, and that she orchestrated it and was a big part of it, at least under the criminal sanction, I think is an unforgivable thing. So again, not my decision, but I have great pause about that, as any reasonable person would.' Pressed directly on whether he favored a pardon, Johnson deferred to Trump. 'Obviously that's a decision of the president. He said he had not adequately considered that. I won't get it in front of him. That's not my lane,' he said. Representative Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican who has been pushing for disclosure of more Epstein information, said a pardon should be on the table for Maxwell. 'That would be up to the president. But if she has information that could help us, then I think she should testify. Let's get that out there. And whatever they need to do to compel that testimony, as long as it's truthful, I would be in favor of,' he told Welker on Meet the Press. Representative Ro Khanna, a California Democrat who has joined Massie's effort to release more information, said he did not support a pardon for Maxwell, who was charged with perjury in connection to a civil deposition in 2016 (prosecutors did not move forward with those charges once they obtained her sex-trafficking conviction.) 'I'm concerned that the deputy attorney general Todd Blanche is meeting with her supposedly one-on-one. Look, I agree with Congressman Massie that she should testify. But she's been indicted twice on perjury. This is why we need the files. This is why we need independent evidence,' he said on Meet the Press. After Trump pledged to disclose more information about Epstein on the campaign trail, the justice department said earlier this month it had determined Epstein did not have a 'client list' and did not blackmail anyone. Johnson adjourned the US House of Representatives early last week to avoid a vote on releasing Epstein files. He said on Sunday he favored 'maximum disclosure'. During his appearance on Meet the Press, he defended that decision, saying the legislation being pushed by Massie and Khanna would require the release of uncorroborated information and could harm the victims of Epstein and Maxwell's crimes. 'You have to protect innocent people's names and reputations whose names might be, as you noted at the outset of the program, intertwined into all these files,' he said. 'These are minors in many cases who were subjected to unspeakable crimes, abject evil. They've already suffered great harm. We do not need their names being unmasked.' That kind of argument is a 'straw man' Massie said on Sunday. 'Ro and I carefully crafted this legislation so that the victims' names will be redacted and that no child pornography will be released. So they're hiding behind that,' he said. Khanna also pushed back on the idea that releasing the information could damage reputations. 'Different people feel that the rich and the powerful have been not held accountable, that they have a different set of rules, and that there may be government officials involved,' he said. 'They're going to be able to distinguish between someone who got a grant for Jeffrey Epstein to do cancer research versus rich and powerful men who were abusing underage girls.'