Its not so much the queues but the danger of having valuables in your handbaggage snaffled that always worries me when putting through the x-ray machine. We have probably all see the TV progs about thieves at airports but there seems to be very little consciousness of this among staff. When I travel with a companion I send them through to wait at the other end and then I put all the bags through, so they are only out of sight when actually going through the machine. When I travel solo I take all my valuables out of my handbag and hand-carry them through the gate. If I have a laptop I make a fuss about the security aspect and make sure that the staff watch it, or examine it so I can hand carry through. Airport thieves target singles. Better to make a nuisance of yourself than to come off the poorer.