A story in USA Today, er, today, reports that the UK has eased it’s clampdown on hand baggage somewhat since the news of last week’s terror plot, with travelers again allowed to carry laptops, phones and ipods, and solid, but not liquid or paste, toiletries. The permissible size of a carry-on, though, has been halved – to about the size of a laptop bag or briefcase, and this restriction looks to become permanent:

“A representative of British airline Virgin Atlantic said permanent limits on carry-ons and a ban on liquids made sense in light of the alleged bombing plot. “You only need a few essentials for the flight,” said Paul Charles, Virgin Atlantic’s director of communications. “Less hand baggage helps speed up boarding.”

Speeding up the boarding process is all well and good, and there’s a certain appeal to never again having to worry about someone dropping their vastly overstuffed mini-suitcase on you as they try to wedge it in an overhead compartment. But another report today, this one from the Guardian, announced that BA has lost some 20,000 bags at Heathrow since the madness began, something that I doubt will clear up quickly as the baggage system is flooded with extra checked luggage. Nothing beats arriving at your destination in a speedy, secure and efficient manner, to spend countless days waiting for your bags to (maybe) show up.

Elsewhere:
- TSA – Full List of Prohibited Items
- ‘Airlines tally cost of terror alert’ (AP)