03 October 2023 , 09:03
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Heathrow Airport passengers can now book themselves a time slot before arriving to slip through the security queue with ease.
The travel hub is launching a six-month trial for passengers to pre-book a slot at security giving them extra peace of mind when travelling. The trial will initially be open to passengers in Terminal 3 travelling with American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Emirates and Virgin Atlantic – with more airlines added as the six month period goes on.
Heathrow Timeslot is a free service which will give passengers a designated time and entry point to the security search area - which some airport staff hope will ensure peace of mind when travelling, as well as reduce queue times for all passengers.
Mark Powell, operational planning director at Heathrow said: “Everyone is familiar with airport security, but at Heathrow we’re constantly thinking of innovative ways to boost the safety and streamline the experience for our passengers.
Heathrow bosses hopes the system will help cut security lines overall (Getty Images)"This new trial will give passengers that extra added bit of certainty and reassurance ahead of their journey and we think it will be particularly popular for those with families or nervous travellers who may want a bit more confidence in their journeys. We look forward to seeing the data come in to give us some learnings on how we can roll this out more widely across Heathrow.”
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The Heathrow Timeslot service is subject to availability and if there are no available slots, passengers will go through security as normal. Passengers should still give enough time to clear security at least 45 minutes before their scheduled departure.
Other airports in the UK have similar systems in place, although you have to pay to use them. Manchester, Birmingham and Luton airports all have fast-track queues that let you pass through the masses more quickly and costs from around £5.
In the ongoing bid to reduce waiting times at UK airports, London City became the first in the UK to introduce CT scanners earlier this year. The new tech allows passengers to keep more items in their bags and take more than 100ml portions of liquids in hand luggage.
The airport says that the scanners have helped security staff to reduce the duration of the security checks from seven minutes in 2022 to 3 minutes and 45 seconds, City AM reports. As a result, security teams have been able to process 30% more passengers.
London City achieved the best on-time performance of any airport in London in 2022, with 71% of all departures leaving on time. It should be noted that far fewer planes take off from the airport than the likes of Heathrow and Gatwick.
The next-generation CT scanners have not been implemented in other larger airports within London. Heathrow is yet to put a timeline on when the tech will be installed and be in operation there, while Gatwick has said it will be in place from June 2024. The Department of Transport requires all UK airports to upgrade their security checkpoints to the newer system by June 2024.