Dublin airport has become the latest hub to relax the 100ml liquids rule for cabin baggage that has prevailed worldwide since 2006.
Passengers departing from the Irish capital will be permitted to carry containers of liquids, aerosols and gels (LAGs) up to two litres in their hand luggage. They need no longer be packed into clear plastic bags and can be stowed anywhere in the cabin baggage.
The move follows the introduction of 30 new computed tomography (CT) scanners, using the same technology as medical devices. The machines can analyse the molecular structure of the contents of a passenger’s bag, detect any potential threat and present security officers with a three-dimensional image.
Kenny Jacobs, chief executive of the Dublin Airport Authority, said: “Dublin airport is one of the first airports of its size in Europe to have this technology in place for every passenger.”
Over the summer, Dublin processed 24 out of 25 passengers through security within 20 minutes.
Dublin is the 13th busiest airport in Europe. It handles more passengers travelling to and from the UK than any other overseas airport. In 2024, 9.76m travellers flew across the Irish Sea between Dublin and Britain – an average of 27,000 per day.
To the London airports alone there were an average of 91 daily flights last year, according to Eurocontrol. The route between London Heathrow and Dublin is the busiest city pair in Europe.
While all passengers leaving Dublin will benefit from more relaxed security, the same will not necessarily apply when travelling to the Irish airport.
Many airports across the UK have the same CT technology in place, but only Birmingham and Edinburgh have relaxed the 100ml rule.
In the summer of 2024, the limit was removed from many UK airports but then reimposed by the Department for Transport (DfT) because of concerns about the reliability of the new equipment. Airports must apply for permission to ease the 100ml rules on a case-by-case basis.
The liquids rule came in as a “temporary measure” in 2006. Restrictions were imposed after a plot to destroy transatlantic aircraft using explosives assembled on board from liquids brought in cabin baggage was uncovered.
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