Apologies from Australia
 

On behalf of normal Australians (which is most of us), I want to apologize to travelers and crew coming from HKG to Australia. I'm apologizing for our government departments and bureaucracy. As it transpires, HKG Airport is the latest target of DOTARS* security insanity, in that a secondary LAGS inspection is now being done on the aerobridges of all Australian-bound flights ex-HKG.

So now having passed through security (and already given up deadly toothpaste and Coke) you're reached duty-free where lots of goodies are available for purchase. But don't dare think about buying that duty-free bottle of grog as it will now be stolen at the aerobridge.

And of course that inspection is a total joke: 7 security officers (who's paying for them?) standing around, wondering wtf they're doing. The inspection is a total, utter, inadequate waste of time - open your bags and a bit of cursory poking around, and that's it. You could still easily smuggle 110g of toothpaste through. But it would be a little harder to hide the just-purchased Black Label.

And why? Who knows. Why on earth does Australia somehow think it's of the same international importance/terrorist risk as the USA? That it's a bigger target than England, or Europe, any Asian country or Israel for that matter? You don't have to surrender your post-security purchased duty-free grog when departing for England, and they invented "LAGS". Australia really has developed an overinflated sense of importance, of where it sits in the world, I think.

Then again, the cynics are suggesting that Mac Bank's influence is behind this, to force everyone to buy their duty-free grog upon arrival in airports like SYD.... I really wouldn't be surprised anymore if there was truth in that, you know.

Australia, our governments, our govt departments, our airports, our security, customs and immigration are embarrassing and fast becoming an international joke. For that I apologize.


*DOTARS: Department Of Transport And Regional Security - the mob that brought you gems such as ID card requirements at Horn Island and wheel clamps on Tomahawks....

Several recent inflight security incidents in China, one specifically involving a nutjob and petrol, China Southern bomb threat, etc. This is going to get much more annoying as the Olympics looms, get used to it :rolleyes:

Yes, but the fact remains, our customs immigration here are an embarassment. A necessary evil, granted, but still the worst that I have seen. A bunch of power hungry police wannabe's.