Yeah.
I reckon the additional security must get implemented when there is some suspicion that a nefarious liquid container could be acquired by a passenger post primary security.
No idea what the criteria would be to determine this, but something must have changed at PEK for instance, as they did the liquid check for all flights to the US (on US airlines) back some years ago, but then suddenly stopped prior to Covid.
Maybe the airport has to undergo a security assessment that would allow it to either be accepted or rejected by the US airlines?

Narita has transit security checks - not applicable to flights from the US and a number of other "safe" countries - because it receives flights from airports whose security may not be considered sufficiently robust. May be the same for AMS (I haven't experienced that).

I have never experienced checks at the gate at NRT, though to be fair others here transit there far more than I do.

PEK was doing this IIRC because there was a brief concern on inbound US flights about unsafe liquids, and China, as it tends to do, made a huge show of it by having secondary checks for about 3 years after this, even after everyone else had realized it wasn't the issue it was thought to be at first.

Flying from TLV to the US you aren’t allowed liquids. It is an American rule! I believe this because I can fly from TLV to any other place in the world with no problem.

HKG and TPE are the 2 that come to mind for me. I can't recall if SIN was the same or not. For TPE, it meant hitting the lonely duty free that was available for arrivals, bringing the purchase into Taiwan, then packing it in my checked bag for departing. At HKG, the UA staff said it was due to "TSA" rules.

I've bought post-security liquids at NRT and BKK several times without issue.

Yep, I and my wife found that out ourselves. No problem bringing water bottles through TLV security but they make you throw them out at the gate before boarding a flight to the US.

Yes, the TLV restriction makes sense, since you could have brought the liquids through security yourself as TLV allows liquids. Since the US does not allow it, they take liquids away at the gate (other than sealed duty free) because there's no assurance of where you got it from. What doesn't make sense is at other airports where liquids aren't allowed through security, why they would take it away at the gate if they KNOW that it came from within the airport.
This is, of course, taking for granted that liquids from home = bad. I will reserve judgment on the substantive question there...

high risk US destinations
 

14 years ago? Yeah, I was in high school!
The first explanation is the correct one. I discovered this on a non stop UA flight BER-IAD two years ago. I asked why and was told it was a secondary screening for certain flights to high risk US destinations. Sounded like a post 9/11 measure.

Interesting, I have flown back from both many times (EZE as recently as July, SCL as recently as two weeks ago) and have no recollection of ever going through a secondary bag check at the gate. :confused:

Agree these are dumb questions. They are imposed by TSA, not the European country. I refer to them as the “extra special USA questions.”

I've encountered this all over the world at random times and places. Most recently SCL. It's just not always a guarantee you can bring your own liquids on board. In 20+ countries of traveling, maybe 5 will take it.

SIN is essentially pre-security that they don’t allow liquids to be taken through security. It’s just that security screening happens at the gate whereafter they corral you into a pen with no services. So you can not take a bottle of water with you on the plane in SIN from what I have experienced. In TLV you can as they only seem to care about interviewing every pax.

Those questions were eliminated before TSA was ever formed in 2001. Some countries never got the message and still try to shift the blame for their own incompetence.

This used to be the norm at SJD for all departing flights. They had a folding table at each gate and would go thru all carry on luggage and bags. No liquids at all, not even the unopened water bottle you just purchased 5 minutes ago inside of the secured area.
When they built the new terminal, they no longer do this, thank goodness!
As one that suffers from severe dry mouth, I purchase 2 bottles of water before boarding every flight.

In the airports that do this, the stores should have a sign posted that you can not take liquids onto the planes. It’s crappy they don’t say anything when you are purchasing that large bottle of water or coke to take on the plane.

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For sure Singapore. The search can be very thorough when the bp has the dreaded SSSS. Source? Me.

I had the same at SCL a few years ago. Not entirely shocking as at the time (not sure if it's still true) SCL allowed liquids through the primary security checkpoint. Somewhat ironically, the water bottles at the seat on the plane were the exact same size and brand as the ones taken away outside the plane's door.