A snow globe, C02 packages, mayonnaise and knives of all shapes and sizes made up just a small fraction of the random items seized from the carry-on luggage of 琉璃神社 International Airport passengers this week.
While some of these items are eyebrow raising the real reason they were hauled out and put on display in the airport鈥檚 lobby Thursday is to remind passengers of rules that have been in place for over a decade.
Mathieu Larocque with the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority said the airport is about to hit peak volumes with spring break when contraband items 鈥� like liquids over 100 ml or something sharp 鈥� get caught up in the security screening process it gets bogged down.
鈥淚t adds an extra minute or two minutes to the screening process,鈥� Larocque said. 鈥淎nd it can make a big difference when there are a lot of passengers.鈥�
Larocque said he understands many of the items end up in carry-on baggage unintentionally.
鈥淚n the vast majority of cases it鈥檚 forgetfulness and that鈥檚 why we want to remind passengers to know the rules, make sure they double check their carry on bags.鈥�
In other cases with things like 鈥渟having cream, sunscreen and other food items, people may not associate them with the rules.鈥�
There are, he said, some exceptions, too.
If you have a child under two years old you can pack milk and juice for the trip. Medications are also exempt from the 100 ml rule.
Airport Director Sam Samaddar said the airport will have extra staff on to deal with the uptick in traffic for March break, but it is still the busiest time of year.
More than 4,000 passengers are expected to pass through security during spring break鈥檚 busiest days, which is significantly more than the usual 2,600 to 2,800 a day.
He added that it鈥檚 been a record period of growth for the airport, which has seen around a 10 per cent increase to overall traffic.
If you go to www.catsa.gc.ca/home you can find a full listing of the items allowed on flights and download an app that will keep you apprised of security wait times at airports across the country.
