STANSTED Airport is gearing up for one of its busiest times of the year as schools break up for the summer holidays and holidaymakers take to the skies. With nearly 300,000 passengers expected to use the Essex hub between today (Friday July 17) and Monday

STANSTED Airport is gearing up for one of its busiest times of the year as schools break up for the summer holidays and holidaymakers take to the skies.

With nearly 300,000 passengers expected to use the Essex hub between today (Friday July 17) and Monday (July 20), staff are reminding passengers to familiarise themselves with the latest security and travel advice to ensure they have a trouble-free time.

Stansted's terminal general manager Neale Jouques, said: "The start of the summer season is always one of the busiest times of the year, so following some straightforward but important travel tips will help our passengers get their holidays off to the best possible start.

"As well as allowing plenty of time for the journey to the airport, passengers should arrive at least two hours before their flight is due to depart, even if they have checked-in online. We also advise passengers to keep hand luggage to a minimum and in line with their airline's restrictions."

He added: "No sharp items, such as knives and scissors, are permitted in hand luggage, and passengers can only carry liquids through security that are in containers less than 100ml and presented in a clear, re-sealable plastic bag. We strongly recommend all passengers go through security as soon as they have completed the checking-in of any hold luggage they are travelling with.

"We do find that many passengers are still unfamiliar with the increased security measures that have been in place since August 2006 but by following these simple steps, passengers will save time at the airport by avoiding unnecessary disruption to their journey.

"We're particularly pleased that over the past 12 months we've been able to deliver a consistently good security performance, with over 99 per cent of our passengers queuing for less than 10 minutes to pass through the security checks."

Full details of the security restrictions in place at Stansted Airport can be found at www.stanstedairport.com/security

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