SXB - I was actually referring to the idiots I frequently encounter at AMS (last time I looked it wasnt in the UK
) who almost without fail do not prepare themselves for the security checks even when politely asked to do so well in advance by a member of the security personnel in both English and Dutch. They DO cause un-necessary delays to an otherwise smooth passage through security and it frustrates the hell out of me as they often appear to be business travellers who really should have the brains to know better!
A point I touched on earlier is that the primary issue in UK airports is the arrangement of the checkpoints. To reduce congestion, the authorities should consider switching to a system such as that at AMS whereby the vast majority of passengers pass through security immediately before they board at the gate. This way, the thousands are reduced to an assortment of more easily manageable tens and hundreds, allowing smaller queues and (apparently, at least) much reduced waiting times as it forces sufficient numbers of staff to be on duty to allow prompt boarding. But as I said before, this is likely to result in valuable retail space being given over to additional space in gate areas...will this ever happen? I doubt it very much...