JohnnyColombia

I'll take your comments on board. I really do need to up my cabin baggage game so I can whisk myself through like George Clooney. Whilst I've been happy to be seduced by the odds, I'm really not the sort of dick that seeks to cause bottlenecks because of my own arrogance. I'll hang onto my baggy and pop it in my laptop bag so it can be pulled out at the same time.

JayeJ

Okay... so we will perform seppuku on our bag because I'm certainly not going to chuck it. Again, many thanks to you.

lizban

This happened to me and my 4 year old at Heathrow (I had a lap top and iPad in the same case which I'd taken out of the hand carry but they were still together).

We were delayed 10 minutes with no one looking at our bag.

i asked them how long it'd be they said as long as it takes.

4 year old then says he needs the toilet - I ask the staff whether they want him to do it there or would they mind hurrying up. Amazingly they did it in the next 30 seconds.

the whole thing struck me a deliberate 'go slow' then when they relisedtje impact it was having on small child embarrassed them into action.

NickP 1K

T5 regular occurrence before: I have a cluster of cables for presentations (e.g. DVI, HDMI adapters, etc) + chargers in a pouch. I NOW take all of the items in that pouch out and put it on a tray - NO more manual searches since then - yes it slows the bag x-ray but I'm not accumulating into the manual line holding up the next manual search person behind me.

Also what is latest on tweezers/nail clippers. Multiple times have had them taken off me - don't even bother bringing them anymore. I don't see where they are not allowed but seem to always get told "can't bring it" resulting in a manual search and a removal.

Globaliser

I've had no difficulty with nail clippers at LHR, or indeed any of the other airports I fly to regularly.

:D!

Same here, across Europe and Asia

My strategy at LHR is just to take as many things out as possible because anything bunched up too close to other objects makes them send it for a manual check

While no LHR screener has ever been hostile to me personally, a few have demonstrated why they are the ones doing the screening and not the ones flying round the world in J and F (not saying that all screeners are like that)

NickP 1K

OK good to know - this was going back 2 years or so - so just stopped carrying them

FlyingSalami

They can and do. I missed a flight a while ago despite having only a carry on containing 4 shirts, 2 trousers, a pair of shoes and underwear, the easiest bag to search and yet they went through all sorts until I missed my flight. Livid was an understatement that day.

nallison

Yeh, really showing them how to be a classy guy there, not sure if serious

If you are, it's no wonder they get hostile if they have to deal with that kind of attitude all day, must be horrendous dealing with all these DYKWIAs.

Often1

+1 - This.

The sort of faux-class distinction thing suggesting that the security types are beneath contempt likely breeds what some here perceive as hostility.

On the other hand, imagine the entirely justified contempt they must feel towards someone harrumphing at them about flying in paid F and thus not having to remove liquids.

damon88

On our last BA flight in February from AMS-LHR-SAN we had a tighter connection than usual through LHR. So of course we were sent through secondary for --- my terribly dangerous electric toothbrush. Despite my trying to be pleasant and patient, the agent was extremely aggressive and rude and made me demonstrate the toothbrush. By the time we got to the kiosk it automatically rejected us for time and would not allow us through. I was about to start crying when an awesome BA agent swooped in, made some calls and then manually overrode the system to allow us through. We ran through the airport like crazy people and made it onto the plane with about a minute to spare. I have vowed in the future to never subject myself to tight connections at LHR again.

Ber2dca

Class is such a big part of the whole relationship between airport/airline staff and passengers and why they're often so toxic. The former tend to be blue collar and may have mannerisms that more well-heeled customers may not be familiar with and find to be very rude or disrespectful.

One just has to consider how many passengers would take just about any order from flight crew but if a FA or GA says something the feeling often is one of 'the help is talking back to me' (even though flight crew are by no means more qualified to discuss a customer service dispute than the others).

Flight crew have social prestige. They are seen as educated, 'reasonable' people of a certain standing. Other staff are just seen as essentially a form of coolies (not by all pax obviously but a not insignificant number).

Lomapaseo

Since I heard that TSA is offered at LHR now, is there a requirement to take you laptop/Ipads etc. out of bags for TSA screening at term 3 ?

KARFA

Tsa pre check? No that is not offered anywhere in LHR.

NickP 1K

TSA is a *US* screening agency, they would not operate anywhere outside the US. US immigration pre-screening which is entirely different for immigration does run in other countries. If you are referring to TSA PreCheck it's a US program only, foreign airlines can join for their passengers to utilize as approved by the TSA for flights departing the US only where Pre Check is available (e.g. Lufthansa does this, British Airways DOESN'T)