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Liquid Ban Passengers Get Extra Opportunity

Passengers can change to a later flight if they are delayed by the longer security checks at Beijing International Airport caused by a recent ban on carrying liquids on domestic flights.

Some passengers in Beijing missed their flights after they had to queue for security checks or took time to transfer items like drinks and toothpaste from carry-on bags to checked luggage, Beijing Times reported on Monday.

The ban was instituted after two suspects were caught on a plane flying from Urumqi in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region to Beijing on March 7.

The suspects, including a Uygur girl aged about 18, allegedly planned to ignite gasoline that they had smuggled on the China Southern Airlines flight.

The ban on liquids was also a part of the effort to tighten security ahead of the Beijing Olympics, the General Administration of Civil Aviation of China said.

Inspectors will open and check more hand baggage than before. "Easy boarding" services, where passengers pay for the privilege of speedier security checks and priority boarding, will be banned, the administration said.

Safety is the top concern for aviation services, the administration added.

The administration wants every vehicle entering an airport control zone to go through a security check.

Beijing airport has set up a special security inspection channel for passengers who may be running out of time to catch their flights, the report said.

The airport authority also reminded air travelers to get to the airport earlier if they needed to check in their luggage, the report added.

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