Airport Security

Flying to the US? What you Should Expect

On Christmas Day 2009 a passenger jet carrying 278 passengers and 11 crew members from Amsterdam was preparing to land in Detroit just before midday when the attempted a ledged terrorist attack took place. A Nigerian man who studied at a British University has been charged with attempting to blow up Northwest Airlines flight 253.

Alarm bells were raised when fellow passengers began to smell smoke, saw a glow and heard what was described as firecrackers. This was the sound of the suspect trying to ignite an explosive device, luckily the heroics of a fellow passenger and cabin crew managed to put a stop to it.

This attempt will obviously have a great affect on airport security, as many people will be asking, how was the passenger able to board the flight carrying an explosive device? Apparently the bomb making components were mixed in-flight. Police are working with their American colleagues to uncover the full background to the incident.

So how will this affect your journey?

• The US has asked all airlines to take extra precautions on flights worldwide that are bound for the US.
• Airport security has been placed on high alert on both sides of the Atlantic, therefore many flights into and out of the UK are experiencing delays, hold ups seem to be worst at the main London airports as these fly the majority of the US routes.
• Extra security measures being adopted include additional pat-down searches before boarding any aircraft.
• Extra bag searches will also be carried out before boarding.
• Passengers are being limited to one small bag of hand luggage each.
• Travellers on international flights are to remain seated for the final hour before landing and will also not have access at this time to their hand-luggage.
• Due to these necessary changes, passengers travelling on international flights are being advised to arrive an hour earlier to allow for the increased security screening.
• Passengers are also advised to double check with their airline and airport for any further precautions they may need to be made aware of.

For further information and updates follow the links below for your departing airport:

Aberdeen Dyce Airport

Edinburgh Airport

Edinburgh Airline and Destination Info

Gatwick Airport

Gatwick Airline and Destination Info

Glasgow Airport

Glasgow Airline and Destination Info

Heathrow Airport

Heathrow Airline and Destination Info

Inverness Airport

London City Airport  -  Departing Airlines

Luton Airport

Manchester Airport 

Stansted Airport