After years of travelers removing shoes and limiting liquids at airport checkpoints, more changes could be on the horizon. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) recently eased one rule, allowing passengers to keep their shoes on during screening at select airports.
Now, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem says the long-standing limit on liquids could be the next security rule to change. She hinted that a new process could allow travelers to move through checkpoints and board planes in under a minute. While no formal policy shift has been announced, Noem said the department is actively reviewing the current restrictions on carry-on liquids.
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Making domestic air travel faster, safer
Speaking on Wednesday, July 16, at the Hill Nation Summit, Noem said the department is working with tech companies to update the rules on liquids for domestic air travel. She noted that pilot programs will launch at a few airports before any nationwide rollout.
Under current TSA guidelines, which fall under Noem’s department, travelers are limited to carrying liquids in containers of 3.4 ounces or less in their carry-on bags. Any container larger than that must be placed in checked luggage. The rule was introduced after British authorities foiled a terrorist plot in September 2006 involving liquid explosives intended to bring down a plane, according to the TSA.
“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,” Noem said.
Noem emphasized the need for a more innovative, multi-layered screening system, one that improves efficiency while still protecting passengers.
“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,” she said.
