GUWonder

Russia further restricted LAGs in carry-ons last month, due to domestic source and European and Asian source concerns.

Given the resources and training made available to anti-Russian terrorists in Russia, a "toothpaste" bomb smuggled from the US to Russia would seem to be a diversion of resources by such extremists.

CaptainMiles

And UA has been flying EWR-AER as of late, as well as the occasional IAD-AER and SFO-AER.

GUWonder

But those aren't regular, commercially-scheduled passenger flights that we can buy tickets for on say Orbitz?

SQ flies from the US to Russia.

wetrat0

The main reason this is stupid is why would a terrorist smuggle explosives from the US in a toothpaste tube? It seems like most of the problem with terrorism in Russia is from people in Russia and former Soviet republics. Given the choice between just acquiring explosives in Russia and smuggling them in from the US (disguised as toothpaste no less) it seems like there is one choice that is obviously easier than the others.

Unless, of course, the terrorists are trying to outsmart us by assuming that we would assume that they would take the easier route and then capitalize on that weakness

wetrat0

Why would they need to keep you from buying a bottle of water at Hudson News? It's WATER (unless they're willing to admit that they don't actually screen the products sold beyond the checkpoint).

FlyingHoustonian

Yes, they fly Houston IAH-Moscow DME then onto Singapore (as Xyzzy also mentioned).

Reports came out earlier that they had TSA checking everything at the gate this week in Houston but I have not confirmed it yet.

txrus

You mean besides sending the boxes thru the exact same process our carryons go thru? No-nothing different which why I love it when I get stuck behind a vendor trying to bring cases of beer & wine thru the checkpoint-hopefully there is a Kettle also watching & maybe even learning something.

Back to the topic of toothpaste-from CNN. Of course, the tubes being used are ones that, officially, are banned from carryon luggage anyway, but why let details get in the way.

http://www.cnn.com/video/data/2.0/vi...mb.cnn-ap.html

N830MH

Not anymore. UA is no longer flew to Russia, but they tried. It didn't work out well.

Spiff

RDX + "another ingredient". What is this "other ingredient"??

The Ionscan Sentinel II detects RDX. This latest increased harassment of airline passengers is once again stupid and unnecessary. It's time to terminate the TSA.

WillCAD

Well, I'm just going by the news items that say that ALL liquids are now banned from carryons to flights heading for Russia. Since it didn't say ALL liquids are banned from ALL international flights, nor did it say that ALL liquids are banned except what's bought airside, I'm presuming that it means that ALL liquids are banned ONLY from flights heading for Russia. ALL, including those bought airside.

But I'm just guessing, based on the news reports. We'll have to wait till a FTer tries to board a flight to Russia and see what they report.

--------------------------------------------------------------------
On a lighter note, I noticed that someone actually did try to hijack a flight and divert it to Sochi:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/w...ijack/5282069/

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/report...ry?id=22413475

My reaction was, "Oh, I guess there was some sort of a credible threat after al - oh, wait, it says the guy was drunk. Okay, I guess it was just a Ukranian Peter Griffin trying to get to the Games."

"Yeah, yeah, TAKE THISH PLANE TO TH' 'LYMPICS! I WANNO GO T' TH' 'LYMPICS! F'You don' take me to th' Lympics right now, I'll BLOW UP THE PLANE! I got <urp> bomb in my pannss..."

GUWonder

Ukraine is currently politically radicalized between pro-Russian and anti-Russian elements and drunkenness is no restraint on expressions of such sentiments.

N830MH

Sign the petition!!! End the TSA now!

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/374/506/028/end-the-tsa/

http://www.senatenj.com/index.php/do...screening/7149

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/end-the-tsa-now/

It's time to end the TSA now!!

Schmurrr

If you wanted to smuggle explosives into Russia, wouldn't you have done it months ago? I mean, the Olympics have been scheduled in Sochi for years. Why wait until just before the games to implement such a vital part of your terror plan?

CaptainMiles

They are flying now a few flights for the Olympics. See, for example, http://flightaware.com/live/flight/U...220Z/KEWR/URSS

Even thought these may not be regular scheduled flights available to the general public, surely they are part of the toothpaste-free zone imposed on flights to Russia.

flyerhog

It's theater. We're banning toothpaste, that must mean we are taking an active role to make the games safe!