Baggage

A baggage screener at Baltimore-Washington International Airport is being treated at a local hospital after her arm got jammed in a baggage belt. The arm of the woman, an employee of the Transportation Security Administration, was caught in the baggage belt about 8:30 a.m., said Chris Rhatigan, an agency spokeswoman. Paramedics freed the woman and took her to Anne Arundel Medical Center. A preliminary report showed that the woman sustained at least one broken bone in her arm, she said.

Slowing down only to take off her boots to be X-rayed, Linda Summars breezed through security in Oklahoma City and right onto a Southwest Airlines plane headed to Baltimore. The designer traveling this week from Yukon, Okla., said there was plenty of overhead bin space, which she didn't need because she carried only her laptop. And her flight? "They made a quick trip of it," she said. "It arrived early." It seems there are unintended benefits from new security rules that ban liquids in carry-ons: shorter security lines, faster airplane boarding and, maybe, more on-time flights.

Allan Hirsch flies several times a year, sometimes for work and sometimes for fun. Almost always, he checks a bag. In the past, he has always felt relatively secure about handing his belongings over to the airlines. "I have always been under the assumption that they are responsible for the luggage once they take control of it and give you a luggage receipt," said Hirsch, a 59-year-old sales rep. "By accepting my luggage, they are taking responsibility for its care." Boy, was he ever wrong.

Good morning --Sidney Ponson --Your trip to St. Louis may involve a surcharge for all of your baggage.

Delta Air Lines is on the move at BWI-Marshall Airport, the latest in a series of changes as the airport prepares for an expansion project in 2012. Beginning next week, Delta will shift its operations from Concourse C to Concourse D. As you may remember, AirTran was most recently based at Concourse D but last month it shifted to be closer to owner Southwest Airlines in the A/B Concourse. Yes, it's musical chairs, folks. With a little alphabet soup thrown in. But when the music stops sometime in 2013, BWI expects to have created a more passenger-friendly airport that's easier to navigate.

A three-dimensional plexiglass apparatus might be a passenger's first clue that USAir is doing things a little differently these days at Baltimore-Washington International Airport.As part of its new Project High Ground to move passengers and planes more quickly, USAir is cracking down on travelers who violate rules about carry-on luggage.Travelers laden with art objects, portfolios, pinatas, overstuffed garment bags, musical instruments and carefully wrapped baby gifts are being required to slip those items into a baggage sizer, located on Pier D between Gates 15 and 18. Oversized items get checked as baggage.

Travelers expecting to fly soon should refrain from stuffing carry-on baggage with fluids, gels or any other product that might be considered liquid, but they should be prepared to bring along a lot of patience, airline officials warned yesterday. Handbags and carry-on items are still permitted on most airlines, but fliers should check items such as shampoo, creams, toothpaste, hair gel and all beverages, according to Transportation Security Administration guidelines for baggage. Although most domestic and overseas flights only banned liquids and gels, British Airways went a step further yesterday and established more rigorous restrictions that prohibited all cabin baggage, including handbags, and all electrical or battery-powered items such as laptops, mobile phones, iPod and remote controls.

Fire service workers to greet families for memorial weekend Fire service personnel from across the country, including the BWI Fire and Rescue Department and members of the Anne Arundel County Fire Department, will serve as honor guards and greet the families of fallen firefighters arriving at Baltimore-Washington International Airport this weekend. The families will come through BWI to attend private and public ceremonies during National Firefighters Memorial Weekend, held annually on the campus of the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg.

Flight information screens to include baggage belt numbers To help passengers find their luggage more quickly and easily, the flight information display screens in the Baltimore-Washington International Airport terminal now show baggage belt numbers next to the information on arriving flights. Display screens in the main terminal and the gate areas on the upper and lower levels are updated by each airline. Baggage numbers posted on the display screens correspond to the numbered belts in the baggage claim areas on the terminal's lower level.

Orlando, Fla. -- While Maryland quarterback Sam Hollenbach and wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey stood at the baggage claim area at Orlando International Airport last week, eager to grab their luggage and officially begin the program's first bowl festivities in three seasons, a few football fans noticed them. They wanted to take their pictures. Maryland vs. Purdue Champs Sports Bowl, Orlando, Fla., tonight, 8, ESPN, 1300 AM, 105.7 FM Line: Pick 'em