Manchester Airport has provided details on confiscated items at security in a bid to remind passengers of hand luggage regulations .
The most-confiscated item “by far” is a cigarette lighter, with 284 lighters handed in over the course of one morning. While passengers are allowed to carry one lighter with them, provided it fits into a clear resealable plastic bag and contains under 100ml of liquid, they cannot have multiple.
Almost 400 items were confiscated in one morning at the airport, with further items including 22 pairs of scissors, five multi-tools, four corkscrews, two hacksaws and two packs of darts. All of these items are forbidden as they do not abide by UK aviation security regulations, which prohibit sharp items or blades with a length or more than 6cm (2.3 inches).
Additionally, eight toy guns were confiscated over the course of the morning due to their resemblance to a firearm. Other items that were taken off passengers included a hammer and two small blow torches – the kind often used by chefs to master a crème brûlée for instance.
On the liquids side, staff confiscated 12 cans of deodorant, two large soft drinks bottles, a bottle of shower gel and a one-litre bottle of vodka.
Passengers are being reminded to bring 100ml liquids in clear resealable bags, and to put large electrical items in a separate tray for screening.
Graham Matthews – Head of Terminal Security (T3), Manchester Airport, commented:
“We want passengers to feel like they’re beginning their holidays here at Manchester Airport. Almost every passenger will wait for less than 15 minutes to get to security so they can then get through and relax in the departure lounge within minutes of arriving here.
“But each time we have to pull a bag aside for a manual search it takes several minutes and every search adds up and can slow down the whole security process – not only for the passenger carrying a non-compliant item, but also for the passengers behind them in the queue. The variety of items we seized in just a couple of hours shows what we deal with every day. If we can cut that it will help everyone get through security even faster.
“We’re partway through installing new state-of-the-art CT scanners that will allow passengers to leave large electrical items in their bags and bring through full-size containers of liquid in their hand luggage. You may encounter one of these new machines if you travel through this summer, but until that work is complete across the airport, you might also encounter an older machine so the rules on liquids and electricals will remain the same as they have been over the past 18 years.”
This comes after the Department for Transport granted extensions to some UK airports which have yet to finishing installing new-generation CT scanners, effectively abandoning the June 2024 deadline.