- The infamous 100ml liquid rule is being phased out at compliant European airports, allowing up to 2 liters in carry-on bags.
- Only airports with approved CT scanners can offer the new freedom; not all will upgrade soon.
- Travelers face an inconsistent set of rules depending on route and airport upgrades.
- The reversal occurred after testing delays and technical issues.
- The US is considering the same move but has not yet changed the rule.
If you’ve ever rehearsed your “please don’t take my shampoo” face at airport security, this one’s for you. The European Civil Aviation Conference (ECAC) has given a nod to some long-awaited technology, effectively killing the 100ml liquid rule—at least where new CT scanners are concerned.
Here’s how it rolled out: After technical tests on Smiths Detection’s Hi-Scan 6040 CTiX scanners, ECAC declared these machines safe enough to figure out the difference between a bottle of water and, well, something more exciting. These CT scanners run computed tomography, giving safety staff a better look inside your bag than most people have in their fridge—no more unloading laptops and tablets onto plastic trays. No more arguing with security about whether mascara counts as a liquid (spoiler: it always did).
Don’t throw a big toiletries bash just yet. Airports without these scanners still chain passengers to the 100ml liquid lifestyle. It turns out that the machines are pricey. Heathrow (famed for charging $7 for water) will shell out around $1.4 billion to upgrade. Not every European airport has pockets that deep, so this rule is now a patchy mess across the continent.
Why Did It Take So Long to Lose the 100ml Liquid Rule?
For anyone muttering “took them long enough,” here’s the backstory: The tech was supposed to show up last summer. However, airport officials worried that the machines might confuse cologne for something explosive, so the European Commission (EC) withdrew the permission slip in September 2024. They put the brakes on, citing a need to “address a temporary technical issue.” Only now, after a year of bureaucratic limbo and presumably many committee meetings, are the scanners considered good enough for daily use.
Some airports had the scanners gathering dust for ages, but rules are rules, even when they only make sense to someone who gets paid by the regulation. Until now, European flyers had to play the “is my deodorant travel-sized?” game, even if the shiny new machines could handle bigger bottles.
Travelers should treat the new rule like a rumor about free drinks at the hotel bar. Double-check, ask around, and avoid getting caught with a family-size bottle of shampoo in airports that still adhere to outdated rules. If you’re flying from Lisbon to Rome, you might breeze through. Heading home could mean handing over your luxury face wash again if the return airport missed the memo.
