I don’t understand how people STILL don’t get this. It’s really not that complex, don’t take liquids on the plane with you! You can put them in your checked luggage, and if you aren’t checking luggage you can get any liquids when you arrive. Or if you insist on taking them with you, have less than 3oz and in a plastic bag.
Most people don’t fly regularly, so they aren’t tuned into these restrictions until they get into the security line. Not everyone is a frequent business traveler. Plus, people are stupid.
It is admittedly somewhat confusing; I flew last week and though they do have a mock-up display at the TSA screening area with what is acceptable, by that point it’s too late.
Most people are just checking luggage now that they would have otherwise carried on, and that’s the category I fell in…but once you figure it out, it’s pretty simple. It’s that “figuring it out” part that is tough…!
Some airports are enforcing this more than others. and i think that may be causing some confusion.
Actually, there is a little more to it.
Your bag MUST be 1qt ziptop size, not just any plastic bag.
Also, no containers can be larger than 3 oz. You can’t take a nearly empty tube of toothpaste for example.
You can only use plastic bag per passenger.
I can see how many people could be caught unaware to the exact restrictions.
I think the new TSA 3/1/1 rule will summarize it for most people:
3 oz bottles.
1 quart ziploc.
1 per person.
Lack of awareness of a law/rule/regulation does not mean you are excused from it. I know you’re not arguing that, but it has to be said upfront.
Building on that, how long has this policy been in place? How many times has this been a HUGE issue? Basically it’s been a big story every single travel holiday since the policy was put in place, and boy did it get a lot of coverage when it was first implemented.
There are STILL people who don’t know they have to have their ID’s with them when they go through security. I think that should be an automatic $50 “you are an IDIOT” fine, or at least they have to take the worst seat on the flight and let the non-idiots move up. I can’t cout how many people I’ve actually heard claim “Oh, well I packed it in my suitcase, is that a problem?” and inevitably “Well, you people should tell us that we have to have our IDs.”
Maaaaaaaybe the airlines could do more. I guess they could put the policy (3/1/1) on tickets and on your online flight purchase confirmation. But I’m not buying that as an excuse.
But honestly, this has been such a major story, for so long, for so many different occassions. I just don’t see how people can claim they weren’t aware. You damn well were aware, you just weren’t smart enough to think about it
I really don’t like not being able to carry a water bottle with me (those super-tiny cups they serve on the plane are way too small, and being gouged $4+ for a 1l bottle of water at the duty free is ridiculous), you’d think there should be some sort of simple test they could devise to figure out if something is water or not. There are people I know that drink maybe two glasses of water a day, no biggie for them, but I usually go through 2.5-3l of water, and basically not being able to drink anything for 5 hours sucks.
I am personally more worried about those recalled laptop batteries, ever seen those videos of laptops spontaneously combusting? scary!
As I said, people are stupid. That said, the 3-1-1 policy is fairly new. Also, like I said, most people are not frequent fliers, and people don’t pay any attention to things that don’t directly affect them, so they get to the airport before they realize they missed out on the rules.
As I said, people are stupid.
Hey, I am a people. I guess I should take offense to your broad statement. But I don’t; taken as a whole, people are stupid. There are smart individuals and dumb individuals but, amazingly, when you average them all out, they come out stupid.
That’s the thing though, the policy DOES directly affect them as they are flying! The new marketing slogan of 3/1/1 is new, but I believe this is the basic policy that has been in place for a while.
Oh well. I’m not flying until Xmas, but it’s just nuts to me.
I guess airlines when you check in should remind you, but even still, people would screw it up.
(now watch me screw this up when I fly, I’d deserve it!)
False! (in a very polite way)
They give you water on the flight. Free beverages are available. And if you’re flying across the country or even trans-atlantic/pacific they make several trips through the cabin with beverages.
Maybe airlines should offer small water bottles to passengers instead of just the tiny cups? I dunno. But I understand the water issue as an athlete, and I’ve never been parched post-flight.
I think the new TSA 3/1/1 rule will summarize it for most people:
3 oz bottles.
1 quart ziploc.
1 per person.
It’s not even that simple - if you are flying from overseas to US you can bring a 100ml bottle, but if you transfer to an internal flight it can get taken off you because 100ml is bigger than 3oz!
There is some interesting discussion on flyertalk.com about this and the inconsistent application of policies by the security staff at different airports - TSA officials participant too.
False! (in a very polite way)
They give you water on the flight. Free beverages are available. And if you’re flying across the country or even trans-atlantic/pacific they make several trips through the cabin with beverages.
I think you ought to re-read my post: a cup of water every maybe two hours (and I mean 1 cup, aka 8 ounces) is not what I’d consider acceptable, also considering the inside of an airplane is kept very dry (below 25% moisture) and thus causes you to get dehydrated fairly quickly (which gives me a headache).
Now, if they gave everybody a 1l (33oz) bottle as they get on the plane and refill that as needed, now, that would be much better, otoh airlines are cheap so odds of that happening = 0. It’s funny when you see all these travel tips about remaining hydrated and being served such pitiful amounts of fluids.
Pardon my language to those on the LR who work for airlines, but airlines are pretty darn stupid.
It’s taken how long for them to realize that they can charge an extra $15 for a window or aisle seat? This is a new pricing practice that some airlines are using. To me, this is a no-brainer.
So let’s say that TSA puts a restriction on how much of a “fluid” you can bring on-board. I’d be selling 1L bottles of water, like you mention, on all of my flights with free refills. You could charge $2 for this and people would buy it. Duty shops are making tons of money on toothpaste, purfume, etc.
I guess it should be noted that I think you can pass through security, buy water from the intra-security permiter stores, and carry these items on board. So to me, any sort of beverage restrictions are mild given that we’re talking about not having our plane blown up mid-flight.
As to 8oz/2hr, if you know you are going on a flight, hydrate before you get on the plane, deal with the minor dehydration, and the rehydrate post-flight. I get headaches too when I don’t drink enough at work, but proper planning will mitigate all the impacts of this security policy.
Now, if they gave everybody a 1l (33oz) bottle as they get on the plane and refill that as needed, now, that would be much better, otoh airlines are cheap so odds of that happening = 0<<
Actually, you are incorrect. Or at least on United.
Take your own EMPTY water bottle with you. (I assume that you are a triathlete and have many of them.) When they start the bev service, politely ask if they can fill (or at least 3/4 full) your EMPTY water bottle with water. Hasn’t been an issue for me and I’ve flown about 10 times in the past couple of months.
clm
OH boy! I fly twice a week, I know the drill. they change everything all the time. Now in cincy, no more boarding pass at security and yesterday the guy told me it’s 3.4 oz now, not 3. So I do this with my eyes closed right? I get annoyed with people that have no clue. However, yesterday, I had a perfum gift set in my bag for my mom’s bday. I completely forgot this was even in my bag. I felt like such an IDIOT!!! Now I am the one that has to go back up and check my bag, god i was so embarassed and apologetic. I guess mistakes happen, even with the frequent flyer “I do this ALL the time” crowd:-)
Now, if they gave everybody a 1l (33oz) bottle as they get on the plane and refill that as needed, now, that would be much better, otoh airlines are cheap so odds of that happening = 0<<
Actually, you are incorrect. Or at least on United.
Take your own EMPTY water bottle with you. (I assume that you are a triathlete and have many of them.) When they start the bev service, politely ask if they can fill (or at least 3/4 full) your EMPTY water bottle with water. Hasn’t been an issue for me and I’ve flown about 10 times in the past couple of months.
clm
my girlfriend and I took a 1L empty nalgene bottle through security and then asked one of the bartenders to fill it up with ice water before we boarded. We had nice cold water all the way to Vegas. 
Mark