All liquids, aerosols and gels (LAG) confiscated from passengers at airport boarding gates will be immediately destroyed.
The items will be collected and sealed in a bag before being disposed of in accordance with Malaysia Airports Berhad’s (MAB) standard operating procedures, said its security and airport fire and rescue senior general manager Datuk Kamaruddin Mohd Ismail.
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Liquids of more than 100ml have to be checked in unless approved, or will be confiscated at the boarding gate.
However, passengers can still buy LAG materials at airport stores after passing the boarding gates. These items will be put in a sealed tamper-evident plastic bag and allowed to be taken on board.
Kamaruddin said regardless of the item’s worth, be it expensive perfume or liquor, MAB will not compromise or hesitate to instantly dispose of it upon confiscation.
“It is the same procedure for airports in other countries, and we are adopting similar steps to ensure everything runs smoothly.
“Of course, the process of destroying such products will be carried out with environmental precautions in mind,” he said, expressing his satisfaction with the smooth passenger check-ins on the ruling’s first day of implementation yesterday.
Kamaruddin attributed the successful hassle-free transition to MAB’s efforts in informing the public.
He said all 45 international flights by Malaysian Airlines went smoothly as of noon yesterday, with only three flights delayed by between 15 and 20 minutes.
“The delays were caused by several passengers who refused to give up their LAGs, and some even tried to sneak their water bottles past security checkpoints, despite having been earlier briefed by MAB staff.
“It also comes as no surprise that a small number of passengers were ignorant of the new ruling, as such is human nature.
“Other airports, like in Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong, also experienced such problems when they first implemented the ruling,” he said.
He added that frequent travellers had no problems, as they were more sensitive to such issues.
A total of 120 “ambassadors” were also stationed around check-in areas and security checkpoints to help explain the LAG rules to passengers.
As at noon yesterday, KLIA and LCCT had 11,404 passengers, while airports in Kota Kinabalu, Penang and Kuching had about 3,000 passengers.
“We distributed about 10,000 resealable plastic bags to passengers and 3,000 sealed tamper-evident plastic bags,” Kamaruddin said.
He added that shops operating in KLIA did not report a decline in sales.
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Source : STAR
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