Why are Certain Things Banned from Airplanes?

by Tan Xin Ying
(Singapore)

Hi I'm Xinying. I have a project... I need to know why things are banned from the airport?

Comments for
Why are Certain Things Banned from Airplanes?

Mar 31, 2009

Safety at the Heart of Banning Stuff from Airplanes
by: Gabriel Tan

Hi Xinying

I believe you're asking about why they ban certain things from the plane's cabin? Rather than being taken to the airport per se?

Here are my thoughts (they may not be the actual reasons why these aviation rules were set up):

Why liquids, gels, aerosols must be stored in 100ml transparent bottles.

It's difficult to differentiate between plain water and other transparent fluids such as kerosene, even petrol.

If a person bring sufficient amounts of combustible fluid up a plane, he/she can actually create a DIY bomb!

So why get passengers to put liquids, gels and aerosols into 100ml transparent bottles and putting all these bottles into a 1-litre transparent plastic bag?

This way, the security officers can see what liquids are being taken into the cabin.

I believe this will reduce the chances of a person taking (sufficient) combustible fluid up a plane and causing serious damage.

Why not even a jack knife, or other similar sharp objects?

This one is quite easy to figure out. I won't insult your intelligence by answering it.

All the best for you project.

But I hope that this helps a few travellers understand why they are so strict with security checks at Singapore Airport.

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