Crew/security

[eliptic]

I did not know that the crew have to go threw the same h..ll like us SLF..i was thinking a easy way out existed!

AND THE UGLY…..
Report Text: At my base ### (UK regional airport) crew use the same security channel as passengers. I was with my crew, proceeding to the aircraft to start our multi-sector day. My bag was pulled aside by the screening staff,...........................

http://www.chirp.co.uk/Downloads/ATFB/ATFB90.pdf


""I replied that it was a solid not liquid; her response; "You could still melt it down!" WHAT!!!. So now I've been told that I, the captain of this flight could endanger the safety of my own aircraft by melting my deodorant."":D

[Envoy320]

crew go through security as do passengers.....

sometimes crew seemed to be far more scrutinised as if to show an example of authority by screening staff.

Bizarre that a pilot cannot take a small bottle of water or liquid on board in case he endagers an aircraft.....an aircraft he has complete control of in his own hands.....

pathetic

[eliptic]

aircraft he has complete control of in his own hands.....

hehe..yea!

Why bother to bring any explosives when he have the whole "missile"

I agree on pathetic :oh:

[BetpumpS]

In my cockiness, I once asked the screening assistant why he had asked my Captain and I to remove our shoes. Naturally the point I wanted to make was that if we had 'plans' to alter the nature of our flight away from the norm, then why would we go through the risk of being caught with contraptions before we even got on the plane. The fact that we controlled the bloody plane meant we already had 300 odd pax lives in our hands.

The reply from the monotonic American was that they could have been interfered with at the hotel by 'folk wishing us harm'.

My Captain (a guy who could easily play the Grandad in a Wherthers' Original Advert) promptly and completely unprofessionally picked up his shoe and placed it a inches from the nose of the american screener and said:

"These extremists may be crazy but they'd have to be bloody stupid to to touch these".

You had to be there but I had the 11 year old giggles where you laugh so hard your stomach hurts and you need to roll on the floor and clench your stomach.

Pre-flight checks were interrupted by occasional bursts of laughter from the 4 of us - honestly you would have thought there were a bunch of kids in the cockpit. Professionalism went out the window on that flight.

[rsuggitt]

The more detailled checks are to catch/deter terrorists masquerading as flight crew in order to get airside or onto an aircraft.

[Rainboe]

They have recruited a bunch of MacDonalds rejects, told them seriously how important they are, what a vital job they do for the security of the West, and told them not to show any preference for crew especially. Very often the recruits they use for security are immigrants themselves, possibly even involved with hijacking themselves (that's a bit of a liberty, but refers to the ex Afghan hijacker working at Stansted with a pass!). They believe most seriously they are doing a vital job, so crew are singled out for particular treatment. The fact that once on board we have access to a jemmy or a large axe, and we have a vehicle with anything from 2 tons to 170 tons of kerosene under our direct control is irrelevant- they must be on guard for us trying to sneak nail files, or screwdrivers, toothpaste, yogurt, deodorant, after shave or shaving foam in a can past these new, self-appointed 'officers of the law'!

The politicians are the ones completely to blame. They were left with this nightmare post 911 of how easy it was to take over a plane. Too difficult to do anything really effective, much better to let the public see something being done to reassure them. So they make crew public spectacles of the efficacy of the new security arangements!

My own feeling is the only way to get the politicians attention is to have any aeroplane with a politician on board 'break down', until said politician leaves. They can't all travel on the military flights, and when they understand they and their families will no longer be able to send 3 months in the summer travelling on the taxpayer, only then will they 'review' procedures! Frankly, putting pilots through what they do is totally unproductive and unnecessary, but they assume they can do what the hell they like.

[GroundedSLF]

Rainboe - Why are you having a go at the security staff? They are only doing their jobs.

Why shouldnt flight crew follow the same rules as everybody else? If its good enough for paying passengers its good enough for paid employees too!

[BetpumpS]

Grounded,

I'll pretend you are on a wind-up mission but for the benefit of those with a Guardian disposition I'll give my few cents.

9/11 (god bless those souls) was a one-size-fits-all excuse to completely :mad:up every innocent persons lives with needless Big brother controls at the expense of common sense.

As has been explained countless of times in this thread, we control the a/c!!! and regardless of what management try to do now and in the future, we can do anything we bloody well like up there if we wanted to. So a power hungry Pontius "I'm Just Doing My Job" Pilate checking my shoes and fondling my balls is not going to do much for flight safety.

[eliptic]

a bunch of MacDonalds rejects

LOL,,:ok:

One time my wife forgot a Fork and Knife (regular food) i the backpack, that traveled trough 3 Airport security until discovered.

I told the Security "no problem! he can take them, there is a lot in the lounge"

In Philippines you can take whatever with you as long as you have some small pesos "left":ugh:

[smudgethecat]

Typical example of this farce that is airport security, i went through security at a large uk airport last week and had a small bottle of water confiscated as obviously it posed a real threat to life and limb, but the leatherman multi tool which has any number of razor sharp blades etc i had in my possesion was deemed acceptable "because as a engineer i needed it to carry out my duties ", when i asked the cabbage behind the desk if that struck him as rather bizzare he merely gave me blank stare and muttered on about how sick he is of engineers and pilots questioning "his authority" and "if i dont like it then get another job.". sums it all up really

[apaddyinuk]

It is very annoying and totally does my head in but I have adopted an approach of "bless them, its the only bit of authority they probably have in their lives"! They earn less then me, have a totally monotonous job which probably doesnt generate any form of thanks and to be honest if me keeping my head down, having my liquids packed and ready and my laptop out before I get to the scanner is enough to keep them happy then Ill do it!

I just dont get some crew who go out of their way to argue the rules with them especially when we have a few infuriatingly frustrating rules of our own that our punters dont like!!!! :ugh:

[Rainboe]

Why shouldnt flight crew follow the same rules as everybody else? If its good enough for paying passengers its good enough for paid employees too!
The quick draw instant reaction! Sounds reasonable- why not? I fly the damn things, despite some idiot here being convinced I'm an 'imposter'! I often pax out and fly back, or vice versa. I have my pilot bag packed with what I need, which because I'm moderately conscientous, contains several books- B737 Management Reference Guide, Bill Bulfer 737 Manual, a massive amount of paperwork I need, headset, pens, calculators, Polos, wallet, camera, pills. I used to also carry the Aerad European Flight Guide. It takes me well over 10kgs including the weight of the bag. Some security now have taken it upon themselves to be little Hitlers and stop people after passport control and weigh their handbags before the X ray machine. When I challenged their right to do so, one plonker at Stansted insisted 'we are partners of the airlines and apply the rules!'. I need my stuff to fly the aeroplane. Security is not serving its customers. It is treating them as the enemy. Barking at people when they are in a long queue like at LHR? Crazy. I felt I was in a concentration camp queue. I once shouted back not to shout orders at me. Sad people. Unfortunately they are doing damage to UK airlines and business alienating customers the way they do. How many people avoid the UK because of them? We're not like America- you still go there even though they treat you like dirt. There is an alternative to the UK, and people are using it because of them.

[742]

Why shouldnt flight crew follow the same rules as everybody else? If its good enough for paying passengers its good enough for paid employees too!

Because security must do its work with finite resources. Wasting them on a pointless, stupid exercise detracts from the real job at hand.

It also detracts from the credibility of the security process. There are intelligent passengers, and more than one has asked me why I and my crew were going through the process when we obviously will have complete control of the airplane.

There are things that can and should be done to ensure that employees are who they appear to be and are not going where they should not. But that would cost some money (not a lot, but some). So instead of real security we have farce.