I still remember the first time I got my travel film completely nuked. I had just spent two weeks roaming around Portugal, burning through six rolls of Portra 400. I packed them in my carry-on, confident that the standard airport X-rays wouldn't do any damage because that is what older photographers had always told me. But when I got my scans back a week later, my heart sank. Every single frame looked like it had been shot through a bowl of muddy pea soup. The shadows were entirely destroyed, the colors were shifted into this sickly greenish-brown, and a thick, heavy grain sat over the entire image.

I had blindly walked my bag right through a brand new 3D CT scanner. If you are shooting film today, these machines are easily public enemy number one. As analog photography keeps growing in popularity among us younger shooters, airport security tech is simultaneously getting much, much stronger. Let's break down exactly what is happening at airport security lines right now, which European airports are currently using the new tech, and how you can save your precious memories from being completely ruined.

The Difference Between Traditional X-Rays and CT Scanners

For decades, traveling with film was pretty chill. Most airport carry-on security checkpoints used traditional, older X-ray machines. These legacy scanners work a lot like a traditional medical X-ray—they blast a relatively low dose of radiation in a straight line to create a flat, 2D image of the stuff inside your bag.

With these older machines, the general rule of thumb was always that film under ISO 800 was perfectly safe to go through a few times without any noticeable damage. Sure, if you pushed a roll of Kodak Tri-X to 1600 or were shooting some ultra-sensitive Cinestill 800T, you'd want to politely ask for a hand check. But for your everyday Kodak Gold 200 or ColorPlus, you could toss it on the belt and sleep soundly on your flight home.

Then came the CT (Computed Tomography) scanners. You can usually spot these beasts from a mile away. They are modern, sleek, incredibly large, and usually accompanied by a sign telling you that you no longer need to take your laptop or liquids out of your bag. That right there is the dead giveaway. Instead of a single low-dose beam, a CT scanner spins a high-intensity X-ray source rapidly around your bag, capturing hundreds of images from every single angle to build a completely manipulatable 3D model of your luggage.

The radiation dose required to do this is massive compared to the old machines. A single pass through a modern airport CT scanner will instantly fog your film, stripping away shadow detail, destroying contrast, and warping your colors. It does not matter if your film is ISO 50 or ISO 3200. It does not matter if it is color negative, black and white, or slide film. The CT scanner will damage it on the first go.

Which European Airports Have The New Scanners?

If you have a backpacking trip or a quick holiday to Europe coming up, you need to be prepared because Europe has been adopting this new security technology much faster than heavily regulated spots in the US. However, the rollout has been incredibly fragmented. Some countries are going all in, while others are pausing their installation due to budget issues or shifting EU regulations on liquid restrictions.

Here is the reality on the ground right now at some major European hubs:

• Amsterdam Schiphol (AMS): This is the big one. Almost every single security lane at Schiphol uses high-powered CT scanners. They were one of the first major global hubs to adopt them fully. Do not put your film through the belt here under any circumstances.
• London Heathrow (LHR) & Gatwick (LGW): The UK has been slowly phasing in CT scanners, but it is a bit of a lottery right now. Some terminals at Heathrow have entirely switched over, while others still have a mix of old legacy machines and new machines. Assume you will hit a CT scanner.
• Rome Fiumicino (FCO) & Milan Linate (LIN): Italy has rapidly upgraded its two major northern and central hubs. Both FCO and LIN predominantly use CT scanners now for all departing passengers.
• Munich (MUC) & Frankfurt (FRA): Germany is currently rolling them out heavily. Munich's Terminal 2 has a large number of them installed, and Frankfurt is expanding their use every single month.
• Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG): Paris has been testing them in select terminals, particularly during the ramp-up for the recent Olympics, but many older 2D machines are still in active use. Still, you should never assume your lane is safe.
• Smaller Regional Airports: Oddly enough, some smaller airports like Shannon (SNN) in Ireland and Teesside (MME) in the UK fully upgraded years ago to speed up their tiny security lines. Don't let a small airport fool you into a false sense of security.

How to Actually Get a Hand Check in Europe

Knowing about the threat is only half the battle. The other half is successfully convincing an overworked, highly stressed aviation security worker to manually inspect your film instead of forcing it through the machine.

In the United States, the TSA actually has official policies stating that photographers have the right to request a hand inspection for film. In Europe, there is no blanket rule. Every country, and sometimes every individual security agent, treats the situation differently. Often, they will tell you their new machines are "film safe." They are not. They might be confusing the new machines with the old ones, or they might just be trying to keep the line moving. Do not argue, but be politely persistent.

The single best thing you can do is make the security agent's job as easy as possible. Take all your film out of its cardboard boxes and plastic canisters before you even get to the airport. Put all the bare rolls into a single, perfectly clear ziploc bag. When you walk up to the security tray area, hold the bag out and, with a big, friendly smile, say, "Hello! I have some light-sensitive camera film here. Would it be possible to get a visual hand inspection, please? The new 3D machines will destroy it."

If they push back, explain that it is high-ISO professional film (even if it honestly isn't). Security staff are much more likely to accommodate you if you are polite, calm, and prepared. If they absolutely refuse down to their final breath, your best bet is a lead-lined film bag, though even that is a gamble—sometimes a CT scanner operator will just crank up the radiation power to see through the lead, which defeats the purpose.

Prepping for Your Next Analog Adventure

Despite the minor headache at airport security, traveling with a film camera remains one of the most rewarding ways to document a trip. You aren't staring at a screen chimping your photos while standing in front of the Colosseum; you compose, fire the shutter, and stay entirely in the moment.

If you're gearing up for a European getaway and want a camera that won't weigh you down while walking twenty thousand steps a day, grabbing a reliable vintage compact or an easy-to-carry SLR is the best move. Check out a great selection of travel-friendly point and shoot cameras that perfectly slide right into a jacket pocket. And of course, keep your gear secure from pickpockets and accidental drops while you're navigating the metro by picking out a comfortable camera strap.

Travel safe, advocate for your precious rolls of film at security, and keep shooting!