Airport Security Complaints & Incidents (Merged)
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I work at LGW and yes wear green, i am always polite and make a point of greeting the passenger with an hello, and if searching a bag will have a chat to the passenger, in the short time i have been doing this job i have been told to go and 
myself so many times by people who you would think were civilised people, just for doing my job, i have lost count of the amount of times i have been verbally insulted by passengers because the metal detector has alarmed and they have needed to be searched.
Reacently a guy punched one of the female officers because she had the cheek to confiscate a litre bottle of water in the process he broke her nose, needless to say he didnt make his flight but put in a complaint against the gaurd for her making him miss his flight ( Go Figure).
myself so many times by people who you would think were civilised people, just for doing my job, i have lost count of the amount of times i have been verbally insulted by passengers because the metal detector has alarmed and they have needed to be searched.Reacently a guy punched one of the female officers because she had the cheek to confiscate a litre bottle of water in the process he broke her nose, needless to say he didnt make his flight but put in a complaint against the gaurd for her making him miss his flight ( Go Figure).
I do agree some of the guys and gals i work with would never make it thru charm school and maybe should leave, but the majority are polite and understand the stress passenger can be under, but is that an excuse for some of the abuse we get on a daily basis.
At the end of the day something went wrong and the safety of an aircraft was compromised who would the travelling public blame?
I have also lost the amount of times i have been asked by a pax do i look like a terrorist, but i always tell the passenger i dont know what a terrorist looks like, which i think is a fair piont, but at all times i remain polite, at the end of the day i have to go thru the same security before starting work and during a shift if i have gone landside.
At the end of the day something went wrong and the safety of an aircraft was compromised who would the travelling public blame?
I have also lost the amount of times i have been asked by a pax do i look like a terrorist, but i always tell the passenger i dont know what a terrorist looks like, which i think is a fair piont, but at all times i remain polite, at the end of the day i have to go thru the same security before starting work and during a shift if i have gone landside.
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Sunnygirl,
A good post, and certainly reflects what I experience when going through security, with bad apples on both sides.
A suggestion, though. There are plenty of notices when going through security to the effect that BAA Security Staff have a right to not be abused etc etc. How about adding, at the bottom, 'In return, we will be polite and courteous to you, the passenger, and will do our best to make the necessary security checks as short and hassle free as possible'.
Just my 2p worth ...
Ll
A good post, and certainly reflects what I experience when going through security, with bad apples on both sides.
A suggestion, though. There are plenty of notices when going through security to the effect that BAA Security Staff have a right to not be abused etc etc. How about adding, at the bottom, 'In return, we will be polite and courteous to you, the passenger, and will do our best to make the necessary security checks as short and hassle free as possible'.
Just my 2p worth ...
Ll
Its a sad world when you have to punch a woman over a bottle of water 
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I feel that if a pax is abusive at the security point they should be refused entry for not complying to well known rules and regulations. If I have a pax being abusive to me at check in then I retain the boarding card ,ask them to go away , calm down and when they can be civil like I am to them come back for the boarding card. It still amazes me how many people come back to check in with bottles that are not allowed through security and then it is the airlines fault . Even after asking the pax if they have liquids in their hand luggage.
Also Bealine you are saying that all baggage handlers are clean as they have had their history checked . Whilst working as cabin crew a few years ago after landing back to base and waiting for caterers to arrive to offload the bars , I happened to open the forward service door and noticed 2 baggage handlers cutting the seals on the bars , after investigations by the police and court cases I was informed that a couple of these guys had whole bar carts in found in their houses. This was at a time where 5 year history checks were needed.
With regards to glass bottles at the same time I was crew a colleague was attacked by a drunken pax after landing downroute and the bottle smashed over her head. Glass bottles should not be on sale . Also the majority of spirit brands on board aircraft are plastic bottles (or used to be) and if glass bottles were not allowed on board I am sure the companies would start retailing with plastic .
Also Bealine you are saying that all baggage handlers are clean as they have had their history checked . Whilst working as cabin crew a few years ago after landing back to base and waiting for caterers to arrive to offload the bars , I happened to open the forward service door and noticed 2 baggage handlers cutting the seals on the bars , after investigations by the police and court cases I was informed that a couple of these guys had whole bar carts in found in their houses. This was at a time where 5 year history checks were needed.
With regards to glass bottles at the same time I was crew a colleague was attacked by a drunken pax after landing downroute and the bottle smashed over her head. Glass bottles should not be on sale . Also the majority of spirit brands on board aircraft are plastic bottles (or used to be) and if glass bottles were not allowed on board I am sure the companies would start retailing with plastic .
LGW security last Monday.
Man in green: 'You can't have that' (150mL bottle of Furosemide)
Me: 'Yes, I can it's medicine, the DfT say I can'.
Man in green: 'But it's more than 100 millitres'
Me: 'yes I'm allowed it, because it's medicine, but not a 150mL of water'
Mig: 'Where's the prescription label' (obviously thinking he's got me)
Me (admittedly somewhat triumphantly): 'On the bottle itself, not the box it comes in'
So I went through, complete with Furosemide..
Coming back from Venice, woman goes of with bottle to talk to her boss before allowing it through. I have wondered if they could be persuaded to take about 15ml: they'd be running to the loo for hours. (It's a diuretic!)
But it seems strange that they aren't au fait enough with their own rules to recognise that a bottle that's obviously medicine is allowed.
Man in green: 'You can't have that' (150mL bottle of Furosemide)
Me: 'Yes, I can it's medicine, the DfT say I can'.
Man in green: 'But it's more than 100 millitres'
Me: 'yes I'm allowed it, because it's medicine, but not a 150mL of water'
Mig: 'Where's the prescription label' (obviously thinking he's got me)
Me (admittedly somewhat triumphantly): 'On the bottle itself, not the box it comes in'
So I went through, complete with Furosemide..
Coming back from Venice, woman goes of with bottle to talk to her boss before allowing it through. I have wondered if they could be persuaded to take about 15ml: they'd be running to the loo for hours. (It's a diuretic!)
But it seems strange that they aren't au fait enough with their own rules to recognise that a bottle that's obviously medicine is allowed.
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By comparison...
Enjoyed a domestic flight in New Zealand (Auckland to Nelson) last November.
Turned up 20 mins before departure to check in hold baggage.
Then straight to gate; no metal detector, no x-ray, no explosives check, no shoe check, no ID check, no questions, nada.
Just time to buy a newspaper before we boarded!
Before I get flamed please note I am not advocating such lax security here, on continental Europe, the USA or elsewhere. On the contrary, it would be folly not to have strict, multi-layered security at such airports because of the alleged level of threat that exists.
But it sure did make a pleasant change from LHR T1 on a Friday evening!
2infinity
Turned up 20 mins before departure to check in hold baggage.
Then straight to gate; no metal detector, no x-ray, no explosives check, no shoe check, no ID check, no questions, nada.
Just time to buy a newspaper before we boarded!
Before I get flamed please note I am not advocating such lax security here, on continental Europe, the USA or elsewhere. On the contrary, it would be folly not to have strict, multi-layered security at such airports because of the alleged level of threat that exists.
But it sure did make a pleasant change from LHR T1 on a Friday evening!
2infinity
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Or you could just do what I do and turn up with no hand luggage whatsoever. Put it all in your hold luggage. Not rocket science is it?
I just take wallet, keys, phone which incorporates MP3 player and passport.
'But what if your bag is lost?' people say.
So what? I've got my wallet and cards. I'm sure I can run to a toothbrush and a few pairs of pants at my destination while it's sorted out.
I've never had a single problem with airport security. I sympathize with them entirely given that I spent 5 years in retail. People, in the main, are Alpha Hotels.
They think that because you're an employee and acting on behalf of a company that they can dish out whatever personal abuse they like and you have to just stand there and take it. I've had punters invite me outside for a fight before now. And not big guys either, just little herberts who fancy a pop at a big bloke (I'm 6ft4) knowing that I can't batter them like I would if they tried it on in the street.
Security Guys and Girls: You have my sympathy!
I just take wallet, keys, phone which incorporates MP3 player and passport.
'But what if your bag is lost?' people say.
So what? I've got my wallet and cards. I'm sure I can run to a toothbrush and a few pairs of pants at my destination while it's sorted out.
I've never had a single problem with airport security. I sympathize with them entirely given that I spent 5 years in retail. People, in the main, are Alpha Hotels.
They think that because you're an employee and acting on behalf of a company that they can dish out whatever personal abuse they like and you have to just stand there and take it. I've had punters invite me outside for a fight before now. And not big guys either, just little herberts who fancy a pop at a big bloke (I'm 6ft4) knowing that I can't batter them like I would if they tried it on in the street.
Security Guys and Girls: You have my sympathy!
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Defeating the Shoe Screening at LHR T3
This is by Bruce Schneier, the security and cryptography expert.
Defeating the Shoe Scanning Machine at Heathrow Airport
For a while now, Terminal 3 at Heathrow Airport has had a unique setup for scanning shoes. Instead of taking your shoes off during the normal screening process, as you do in U.S. airports, you go through the metal detector with your shoes on. Then, later, there is a special shoe scanning X-ray machine. You take your shoes off, send them through the machine, and put them on at the other end.
It's definitely faster, but it's an easy system to defeat. The vulnerability is that no one verifies that the shoes you walked through the metal detector with are the same shoes you put on the scanning machine.
Here's how the attack works. Assume that you have two pairs of shoes: a clean pair that passes all levels of screening, and a dangerous pair that doesn't. (Ignore for a moment the ridiculousness of screening shoes in the first place, and assume that an X-ray machine can detect the dangerous pair.) Put the dangerous shoes on your feet and the clean shoes in your carry-on bag. Walk through the metal detector. Then, at the shoe X-ray machine, take the dangerous shoes off and put them in your bag, and take the clean shoes out of your bag and place them on the X-ray machine. You've now managed to get through security without having your shoes screened.
This works because the two security systems are decoupled. And the shoe screening machine is so crowded and chaotic, and so poorly manned, that no one notices the switch.
U.S. airports force people to put their shoes through the X-ray machine and walk through the metal detector shoeless, ensuring that all shoes get screened. That might be slower, but it works.
Defeating the Shoe Scanning Machine at Heathrow Airport
For a while now, Terminal 3 at Heathrow Airport has had a unique setup for scanning shoes. Instead of taking your shoes off during the normal screening process, as you do in U.S. airports, you go through the metal detector with your shoes on. Then, later, there is a special shoe scanning X-ray machine. You take your shoes off, send them through the machine, and put them on at the other end.
It's definitely faster, but it's an easy system to defeat. The vulnerability is that no one verifies that the shoes you walked through the metal detector with are the same shoes you put on the scanning machine.
Here's how the attack works. Assume that you have two pairs of shoes: a clean pair that passes all levels of screening, and a dangerous pair that doesn't. (Ignore for a moment the ridiculousness of screening shoes in the first place, and assume that an X-ray machine can detect the dangerous pair.) Put the dangerous shoes on your feet and the clean shoes in your carry-on bag. Walk through the metal detector. Then, at the shoe X-ray machine, take the dangerous shoes off and put them in your bag, and take the clean shoes out of your bag and place them on the X-ray machine. You've now managed to get through security without having your shoes screened.
This works because the two security systems are decoupled. And the shoe screening machine is so crowded and chaotic, and so poorly manned, that no one notices the switch.
U.S. airports force people to put their shoes through the X-ray machine and walk through the metal detector shoeless, ensuring that all shoes get screened. That might be slower, but it works.
Ten West,
What about prescription medicines? Put them in your checked baggage and you are in DEEP dodo if that gets lost. Especially if it's something like insulin, which you need shortly after arival at destination. Just imagine the situation - it's 11pm on a Sunday night, and you've arrived at this small country town and your bags haven't, and you've no insulin. Or if you are on steroids - you mustn't stop taking steroids, you have to wind down slowly. Just to get a prescription in the US for diabetic drugs when I had the packages to show the doctor took hours....
What about prescription medicines? Put them in your checked baggage and you are in DEEP dodo if that gets lost. Especially if it's something like insulin, which you need shortly after arival at destination. Just imagine the situation - it's 11pm on a Sunday night, and you've arrived at this small country town and your bags haven't, and you've no insulin. Or if you are on steroids - you mustn't stop taking steroids, you have to wind down slowly. Just to get a prescription in the US for diabetic drugs when I had the packages to show the doctor took hours....
Pilot of the Airwaves
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Posted by radeng
Have encountered this problem before.
It is poor training by management or the MIG trying to be clever.
Not every country has the archaic practice (and waste of money) of relabeling prescription drugs, when the instructions are already in the original packaging or putting the person's name on them, as the UK does.
....and because you are traveling on a British passport, doesn't make you a UK resident or have to have a UK address.
Mig: 'Where's the prescription label'
It is poor training by management or the MIG trying to be clever.
Not every country has the archaic practice (and waste of money) of relabeling prescription drugs, when the instructions are already in the original packaging or putting the person's name on them, as the UK does.
....and because you are traveling on a British passport, doesn't make you a UK resident or have to have a UK address.
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Very true. But as has already been discussed, prescription medicines should present no problem. If they query it, ask to speak to a senior guy or a supervisor. Or just decant it into a 50 or100ml container instead and put the rest in the hold? Do you actually need to take all 150ml through departures with you?
My approach of no hand luggage doesn't work in every situation and for every person, but I was just relating my own experience of using this method of getting through security quickly and easily.
My approach of no hand luggage doesn't work in every situation and for every person, but I was just relating my own experience of using this method of getting through security quickly and easily.
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prescription medicines should present no problem.
There are also many liquid medicines that require shaking ie: remixing in the original bottle: before being taken, where decanting into a bottle suitable for that medicine and purpose is not an option.
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In the past I have had packets of manufacturer labeled blister packed pills queried....which is none of the MIG's business
The problem would only arise if he didn't believe you, in which case it should be possible to speak to a supervisor who could always contact the airport medics for clarification?
It's a shame it's had to come to this sorry state of affairs though. I'm fortunate in that I've never had to go through security carrying medicines. Anyone have any suggestions as to how life could be made easier for our medicated colleagues here? Letter from GP perhaps?
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Ten West
Unfortunately, you are getting into the same bed as the MIG's and allowing them a "license" to go too far, which is why there is a problem with peoples' attitude to security staff in the UK...too many "little Hitlers", trying to be clever and smart, but not vigilant. They should do their job correctly and nothing more, so as to speed you on your way, not delay.
Since when have factory sealed and labeled medicines been taboo?
For one, if you could get a letter, it would probably not be in English; and two, try to persuade a foreign doctor to give you such a document.
You need to think global and multi lingual.
Not everything runs or works as it does in the UK....or are all documents in English....nor is everything recorded on paper!
Unfortunately, you are getting into the same bed as the MIG's and allowing them a "license" to go too far, which is why there is a problem with peoples' attitude to security staff in the UK...too many "little Hitlers", trying to be clever and smart, but not vigilant. They should do their job correctly and nothing more, so as to speed you on your way, not delay.
Since when have factory sealed and labeled medicines been taboo?
Letter from GP perhaps?
You need to think global and multi lingual.
Not everything runs or works as it does in the UK....or are all documents in English....nor is everything recorded on paper!
Last edited by IB4138; 2nd Feb 2008 at 13:36.
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Surely it wouldn't be beyond the resources of the NHS to have a pre-printed form which they could give out at the same time as the prescriptions, signed and stamped by the surgery and stating that the person detailed on the form has been prescribed whatever it is? Could even have the passport number on it for added security. Just a thought.
I've had no problem getting a letter from the GP regarding carrying the necessaries for injection, but never needed it. (As an aside, how can people inject themselves for FUN?) Interestingly, the security people NEVER query the insulin injection needles, only the bottle with medicine. I don't know what they would do if you had bottles of insulin of say 50ml and you had three or four of them......
As was said, training is somewhat deficient. Bad training is one result of bad management, of course. It is also often an attempt to cut corners financially at the expense of the PBI (staff on the ground!)
At least Gatwick appear to attempt to get enough gates open to minimise queues. I have a friend who works in immigration there, and she complains about the attitude of the MIG to workers. Not, I would have thought, a good idea if you are likely to go abroad for a holiday.........immigration and then customs could have quite a time getting their own back!
On a slightly different tack, the uniforms for immigration not only are cheap, they look cheap and nasty. Another labour government c*** up! The staff don't like them either.
As was said, training is somewhat deficient. Bad training is one result of bad management, of course. It is also often an attempt to cut corners financially at the expense of the PBI (staff on the ground!)
At least Gatwick appear to attempt to get enough gates open to minimise queues. I have a friend who works in immigration there, and she complains about the attitude of the MIG to workers. Not, I would have thought, a good idea if you are likely to go abroad for a holiday.........immigration and then customs could have quite a time getting their own back!
On a slightly different tack, the uniforms for immigration not only are cheap, they look cheap and nasty. Another labour government c*** up! The staff don't like them either.
Fair enough. I'll shut up now! As you were gentlemen...
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the uniforms for immigration not only are cheap, they look cheap and nasty.
Yes, makin' mock o' uniforms that guard you while you sleep
Is cheaper than them uniforms, and they're starvation cheap
"Tommy" by Rudyard Kipling (1892)
Is cheaper than them uniforms, and they're starvation cheap
"Tommy" by Rudyard Kipling (1892)
Imigration uniforms are blue, and polyester. Apparently, some staff have suffered allergic reactions, and then they have to have a special uniform made.....The standard ones probably won't last, either. Now a good bit of west country serge and a cotton top.......