NEW baggage x-ray machines at Southend Airport allow thousands of bags to be processed every hour.

The airport has installed two of the high-tech 3D scanners which can process 1,800 bags per hour each.

The HI-SCAN 10080 XCT machines were developed by Smiths Detections and airport bosses hope the efficient technology will improve passenger experience and bring customers back following the pandemic.

The machines provide high resolution images to optimise detection performance and speed up the process of getting bags onboard planes.

The airport has also recently announced a new trial lane within security which allows passengers to leave liquids and laptops within bags taken onboard their flight, in a further bid to make the airport more appealing to passengers.

Glyn Jones, CEO, London Southend Airport, said: “The aviation industry is one of the worst hit by the pandemic, challenges remain yet we are pleased to welcome passengers to the airport and continue to invest into our excellent customer experience.

“As travel restrictions ease, so too will passenger confidence and demand, we believe the airport has a bright future and continue to invest to bring local economic benefits, from connectivity to employment. The new hold bag system will ensure efficiency when processing passengers bags onto flights whilst maximising security via new x-ray screening technology.”

Richard Thompson, global director for aviation, Smiths Detection, added: “We are delighted that London Southend Airport chose us as their partner to deploy the latest and highest specification security screening equipment. These systems will provide operational efficiencies and passenger experience improvements behind the scenes, all of which will be invaluable both as air travel picks up and many years into the future.”