GATWICK
Because the 'authorities' still earnestly believe that all of Irish origin are coming to blow up the UK and all residents of the offshore islands are international currency smugglers.
North Terminal Irish flights are treated same as UK Domestic so no consistency in the airport.
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Brought up the same problem last week myself in other forum (link below). Whatever the technical reason, it's aggravating, especially as most travellers are not warned to have their boarding card, rather than passport, ready for inspection and the queue gets even longer and more impatient.
http://www.pprune.org/passengers-slf...shaming-6.html
http://www.pprune.org/passengers-slf...shaming-6.html
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I shall reply, despite the fact that this should not be in a separate thread.
I once tried to beat the queue by going to a desk with no queue, and was refused access, being sent to join the scrum. When I asked why, I was told the reason, and it makes sense to me..."because you have to be photographed."
I once tried to beat the queue by going to a desk with no queue, and was refused access, being sent to join the scrum. When I asked why, I was told the reason, and it makes sense to me..."because you have to be photographed."
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..."because you have to be photographed."
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At Gatwick they take pictures of domestic arrivals on arrival and only allow you to exit landside if you match the computer stored photo. Something to do with mixing arriving and departing pax in the South Terminal. It works fairly well for gates 1-10; can't comment about elsewhere.
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Never happened to me on an arriving flight from Ireland - and I've been through loads of times in last few years. Straight off plane, up to immigration hall, sent via yon old feller on the Irish/Channel Islands desk, give him your boarding card, and then through the perspex tunnel and out and up into Baggage Hall. NEVER been photographed. So now we appear have three arrivals procedures at LGW South:
1. International pax via UK Border control (passports)
2. ROI/CI pax with no photos via one man desk (boarding cards)
3. Domestic pax with photos via one man desk (boarding cards)
1. International pax via UK Border control (passports)
2. ROI/CI pax with no photos via one man desk (boarding cards)
3. Domestic pax with photos via one man desk (boarding cards)
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Was always referred to as the CTA or Common Travel Area. Agreement between the British and Irish Governments no passport check required so no need for Immigration Officers. It's a bit like a domestic trip with a twist!
UK Special Branch still have a particular interest in arrivals from Eire and can often be found waiting behind desks clearly marked with the Poilice Force crest to check your identity/documents by request. In some airports they may have assumed a 'passive' role where you may be asked to use a channel where you will be asked to provide proof of which flight you've just arrived on by presenting either your boarding card or flight confirmation documentation to a civilian (airport or private security) whether you see or don't see a member of the SP when you arrive they will see you as you will always pass by a camera taking either video or stills, don't expect the camera to be painted bright orange and have a big sign under it saying 'smile please'!
UK Special Branch still have a particular interest in arrivals from Eire and can often be found waiting behind desks clearly marked with the Poilice Force crest to check your identity/documents by request. In some airports they may have assumed a 'passive' role where you may be asked to use a channel where you will be asked to provide proof of which flight you've just arrived on by presenting either your boarding card or flight confirmation documentation to a civilian (airport or private security) whether you see or don't see a member of the SP when you arrive they will see you as you will always pass by a camera taking either video or stills, don't expect the camera to be painted bright orange and have a big sign under it saying 'smile please'!
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So, in theory, I could be a non-UK/ROI national aware of this system and require entry to the UK without an immigration check. I say again, I have NEVER seen a clearly identified Police presence on the CTA Channel - only one airport official collecting boarding passes. I travel through here twice a month at the very least.
(i) book myself on a Ryanair Ireland-LGW flight and print the online Boarding Pass, tearing off the lower portion as though I have actually used it.
(ii) actually travel to LGW South on a flight from God knows where and hang around until the 'pretend' flight arrives from Ireland
(iii) go through the 'one man' channel, presenting my spurious Ryanair boarding pass, as no photo ID required.
(iv) Bingo - I'm in and completely under the radar. All the time smiling at the UK Border Agency staff turning back bona-fide UK passport holders because it's not their job to let them through if they've arrived from Ireland.
Doesn't it make you feel safe?!
(i) book myself on a Ryanair Ireland-LGW flight and print the online Boarding Pass, tearing off the lower portion as though I have actually used it.
(ii) actually travel to LGW South on a flight from God knows where and hang around until the 'pretend' flight arrives from Ireland
(iii) go through the 'one man' channel, presenting my spurious Ryanair boarding pass, as no photo ID required.
(iv) Bingo - I'm in and completely under the radar. All the time smiling at the UK Border Agency staff turning back bona-fide UK passport holders because it's not their job to let them through if they've arrived from Ireland.
Doesn't it make you feel safe?!
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Steviec9
If you arrive from Ireland (ROI) you are an International arrival not Domestic, hence no need for the photograph on arrival. When you get to Passport Control, because Ireland is part of the Common Travel Area, there is no need for your passport to be checked, hence the separate arrivals corridor at Passport Control. UK Domestic arrivals come through a different channel and collect their baggage from a different area. This involves them mixing with departing passengers, hence the photos are taken on arrival to ensure only genuine domestic arrivals are able to exit through the domestic channel.
If you arrive from Ireland (ROI) you are an International arrival not Domestic, hence no need for the photograph on arrival. When you get to Passport Control, because Ireland is part of the Common Travel Area, there is no need for your passport to be checked, hence the separate arrivals corridor at Passport Control. UK Domestic arrivals come through a different channel and collect their baggage from a different area. This involves them mixing with departing passengers, hence the photos are taken on arrival to ensure only genuine domestic arrivals are able to exit through the domestic channel.
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So are we saying that anyone can avoid UK Border checks by coming in through Eire? My other half is American and came back complete with a working visa that took months to get that was never even checked on entry as he came back BOS-DUB-LHR. What are we missing here? Where's the check?
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Skipness - I certainly believe so (but am hoping to be proved wrong).
Everyone believed to be arriving from ROI at LGW South is put through a single channel (manned by a single airport employee) in the International Arrivals Hall with only a boarding card stub as proof of identity and of origin. Possibility (very remote in my experience) that Police may be on hand to ask for further identity checks...
Of course, official answer is that all pax originating from ROI will have cleared EU Immigration check there (or wherever their original point of entry to EU was). My point is regardless of that assumption, you can still circumnavigate UK Border Control at LGW South by the method I have described above.
Everyone believed to be arriving from ROI at LGW South is put through a single channel (manned by a single airport employee) in the International Arrivals Hall with only a boarding card stub as proof of identity and of origin. Possibility (very remote in my experience) that Police may be on hand to ask for further identity checks...
Of course, official answer is that all pax originating from ROI will have cleared EU Immigration check there (or wherever their original point of entry to EU was). My point is regardless of that assumption, you can still circumnavigate UK Border Control at LGW South by the method I have described above.
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No. My understanding is as follows.
Border control will still apply at the airport of arrival DUB. Irish authorities would need to be satified that passport and VISA were valid even if this was a flight transfer. DUB - LHR is non domestic intra european. In Shengen Countries EU pax can travel freely across boundaries without Passport control but UK is Non Shengen. Therefore all arriving pax ofrom outwith UK are effectivley subject to passport control. This would include anyone travelling ona non EU passport.
All pax entering EU and UK are notified by airlines to border control. i.e. Immigration know who is coming before you get to the passport desk. Unless there is a physical need to check documents I assume they will only filter check papers - random.
At LGW were domestic pax mix with international pax e.g. at S terminal arriving Squeezy jet pax mix with departing pax in a common departures/arrival area. There was a potential risk that pax from say Barcelona could swap boarding cards with pax to Glasgow, before Passport control. This would ppotentially allow an illegal to board ona false passport at Barcelona and then avoid passport control on a domestic link LGW tpo GLA.
The photo ID/ Landing card check provides a means to ensure that all arrivals do in fact pass from the aircraft to landside. Any swap of Info would show up at the check where the operator can reconcile the bar code with a photo. Missing pax or wrong ID's will show up.
At other UK airports where pax mix there is less chance of this happening as , from a common lounge, individual gates are policed by airline staff. Boarding card/ photo ID and passports are checked depending on final destination of the flight. Remember, carrying someone without appropriate documentation will land the Airline with cost of repatriation etc.
Border control will still apply at the airport of arrival DUB. Irish authorities would need to be satified that passport and VISA were valid even if this was a flight transfer. DUB - LHR is non domestic intra european. In Shengen Countries EU pax can travel freely across boundaries without Passport control but UK is Non Shengen. Therefore all arriving pax ofrom outwith UK are effectivley subject to passport control. This would include anyone travelling ona non EU passport.
All pax entering EU and UK are notified by airlines to border control. i.e. Immigration know who is coming before you get to the passport desk. Unless there is a physical need to check documents I assume they will only filter check papers - random.
At LGW were domestic pax mix with international pax e.g. at S terminal arriving Squeezy jet pax mix with departing pax in a common departures/arrival area. There was a potential risk that pax from say Barcelona could swap boarding cards with pax to Glasgow, before Passport control. This would ppotentially allow an illegal to board ona false passport at Barcelona and then avoid passport control on a domestic link LGW tpo GLA.
The photo ID/ Landing card check provides a means to ensure that all arrivals do in fact pass from the aircraft to landside. Any swap of Info would show up at the check where the operator can reconcile the bar code with a photo. Missing pax or wrong ID's will show up.
At other UK airports where pax mix there is less chance of this happening as , from a common lounge, individual gates are policed by airline staff. Boarding card/ photo ID and passports are checked depending on final destination of the flight. Remember, carrying someone without appropriate documentation will land the Airline with cost of repatriation etc.
So are we saying that anyone can avoid UK Border checks by coming in through Eire?
If get kicked out by UK or Ireland then pretty much you can guarantee that entry into the other one later automatically is flagged.
Steviec9
Point you made is correct as had highlighted it in second post that it is possible for 2 people to meet in Toilet and switch boarding passes.
Issue is less of a problem with online checkin as need to put in passport number etc so that will show whether you can validly travel.
Point you made is correct as had highlighted it in second post that it is possible for 2 people to meet in Toilet and switch boarding passes.
Issue is less of a problem with online checkin as need to put in passport number etc so that will show whether you can validly travel.
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The photo ID/ Landing card check provides a means to ensure that all arrivals do in fact pass from the aircraft to landside. Any swap of Info would show up at the check where the operator can reconcile the bar code with a photo. Missing pax or wrong ID's will show up.
My original loophole method above still stands - it IS possible. I accept all that everyone here has said regarding the various controls, hidden police presence etc. It does not alter the fact that there are no actual, real time, identity checks carried out during the ROI arrivals process as there are for other (non CTA) international arrivals and even UK domestic arrivals. On the reverse journey, the Gardai check ID of all incoming passengers (certainly at DUB and SNN, which I use), regardless of origin. They accept a UK Driving Licence but have even said 'we just need to make sure who you are'.
Last edited by Steviec9; 9th Apr 2009 at 11:46.
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About time. At least it will cut down on the time it takes to exit the airport after an ROI arrival (which was my original gripe on the other forum - 2 Ryanair arrivals = 300+ people queuing for the single channel, looking for boarding cards and being refused by UK Border Entry staff the option of using a passport).
Until the CTA is scrapped and we're all treated to an ID check under the new scheme, loopholes exist at LGW South Border Control.
Until the CTA is scrapped and we're all treated to an ID check under the new scheme, loopholes exist at LGW South Border Control.
Last edited by Steviec9; 9th Apr 2009 at 12:34.