We didn’t have any checked-in bags, but turned up to Birmingham Airport three hours before our flight on the May Bank Holiday Monday as instructed. I’d been looking forward to this Tenerife trip with my friend for months, but all that excitement was currently being squashed by a big anxiety knot in my stomach.
There’s something about flying that’s inherently stress-inducing. And I’d heard the horror stories about three-hour queues and passengers missing their flights – even just the day before. I’d text my friend in a panic saying we should give ourselves even more time to get through security, just in case.
We emerged from the tunnel connecting the far car park to the airport entrance and straight away, the building looked different to my last visit 12 months earlier. Scaffolding was up by the arrivals door and part of the road was blocked off, with a walk through set up to the premium pick-up area.
Read more: Key dates hand luggage rules change at Birmingham Airport, Manchester, Gatwick and Heathrow
Security queues
We cut inside at the departures entrance and followed the building round to security. Rather than catching the escalator upstairs, the queue started on the ground floor (the ‘new normal’ according to BHX bosses) and had around 200 people waiting in it when we arrived at midday.
The area was hot and I heard several people mention as much as we snaked back and forth around the belt barriers. Thankfully, it moved quickly and we were loaded into industrial-sized lifts within ten minutes.
At the top, the queue continued to wind steadily through a better-ventilated room. Within three minutes, we were through the boarding pass e-gates and 15 minutes after that, we were entering a large security hall that looked totally different to the one I’d used the year prior. The Fast Track lane was moving even quicker.
New scanners, new rules
Four of the six-or-so lanes were open and the new equipment looked like something sent from the future. A big sign told us that ‘body scanners’ were in operation.
There were no signs reminding us to unpack our liquids, or stations set up with plastic bags to place them into. Everyone in the line seemed to be asking each other – and the security guards when they passed by – the same question: ‘what do we do with our liquids?’
Birmingham Airport is still undergoing a £60 million refurbishment to build a brand new security hall with state-of-the-art security scanners that will put an end to the 100ml liquids limit and mean passengers can keep liquids and electronics in their hand luggage during screening. The scanners aren’t scheduled to launch officially until June 1, but some have been trialled since April, and it seemed that we were among those getting to try them out early.
What Birmingham Airport’s new security hall will look like once complete(Image: BHX)
Word was passing down the line that we could keep our liquids in our bags and, as we reached the front of the queue, an airport worker confirmed it. People were obviously confused – some were taking their liquids out anyway, others were frantically stuffing theirs back in their bags and some had to be told to take their jackets off. We could have done with a few signs telling us what to do, but there were plenty of staff on hand to offer advice, at least.
Body scans
It was our turn to step up and grab a grey tray. There was a brief hold-up when our lane ran out of trays, but it was resolved within a few minutes. My friend got called back because she hadn’t pushed hers onto the conveyor belt (“you have to push your own tray on”, the woman manning the belt announced to the queue), then we joined the short line for the body scanner.
I realised that every passenger was getting scanned, instead of walking through an archway and getting checked with a handheld metal-detector only if the alarm sounded, as per the old system. I hadn’t been expecting this part, but the nice security guard at the front of the queue was explaining how everything worked – just stand on the footprints and lift your arms. After a couple of seconds stood like a human starfish, I was through and my bag was already waiting for me on the other side.
I checked my watch. It had taken us 43 minutes from joining the security queue to reach the departure lounge – nowhere near as bad as we’d feared, though it’s worth mentioning that other holidaymakers who flew out that same day reported much longer queues on Twitter.
The security queue at BHX (at least at the time we arrived) had been long but well-managed, although some signs would have been useful to allow passengers to prepare in advance. Of course, the new security hall might look a lot different after June 1 and though there’s bound to be a few teething issues, it’s safe to assume that wait times will drop when everything is up-and-running and once passengers are familiar with the new rules.
Birmingham Airport’s advice
Birmingham Airport’s current advice for passengers flying over the next few months is to arrive three hours before departure if you have no hold luggage and have already checked in online. Those with bags should check their airline’s advice and arrive when their check-in desk opens.
Regarding security rules, the official advice for passengers flying before June 1 is to follow the current guidelines – to keep liquids in containers under 100ml in a resealable plastic bag and remove large electronics from bags to be screened separately. That way, even if you end up using the new scanners, you’re still prepared for each eventuality.
