jphripjah

I know that a lot of posters here like to poke fun at TSA and criticize TSA. That's fine, but I think if you spent some time flying out of obscure African airports, you might actually develop a new appreciation for TSA.

2011, Flying from Conakry, Guinea to Paris.

Uniformed man and woman at the security screening post, both whispering to me "money, money" and rubbing their fingers together. My bag goes through the machine, they start rooting through it, they pull out only a ziploc bag that has cash in it. The guy reaches in takes out the cash, holds it in his fingers for a moment, puts it back, and lets me go.

This week, flying from Pointe Noire, Congo to Brazzaville, Congo.

The screener doesn't ask me if I have anything metal or any drinks or weapons:

"Do you have money, put it in the tray."

"Uh, I'll put it in my front pocket here, it's paper. It won't set off the machine
Do you want me to take off my belt?"

"No belt. Take off your watch. You have iPhone? Where is iPhone?"


Full search of the bag, I do get the watch back. There's a police representative at the security checkpoint too. He asks for my ticket. I hand him my boarding pass. He demands the paper printout I used to get the boarding pass, which fortunately I still have. I suspect this was just a ploy to find me out of compliance or missing something.

This week, flying from Brazzaville, Congo to Libreville, Gabon.


Uniformed security lady checks my ID (no name game), comments that I am American. I sit down a few minutes later, before going through the screening check point. She walks over and sits down next to me and says "American! Give me dollar! Give me Euros!" I say no.

I go to the screening checkpoint. Being prepared, my dollars and Euros are pressed in thin wads in my back pockets, with some inside my belt. Better if they don't see any cash. I approach, and the guy predictably says "money, money." I smile and say "No." He sees I have coins in my hand:

"Put them in the tray."
"Uh, I'll put them in my bag here."
"Do you have francs? It's not advisable to take Central African francs out of the country."
"Well, I'm flying to Gabon, they use them there too."
"Ah, Gabon, OK. Take off your watch."

Full search of bag contents by him and his colleague, mainly in nooks and crannies where no threat to plane could reasonably be kept. Then they eventually let me go.

Fortunately, I've never actually had anything stolen or paid a bribe at an African airport. I did pay a bribe once to avoid a strip search at the Guinea-Sierra Leone land border. I consider that to be 70 cents well spent.

I think these goons are just as bad or worse trying to get money from African travelers; it's not discriminatory or anything. JT had a good blog write up about what happens at the airport in Angola, which sounds even worse:

http://www.jasonaroundtheworld.com/tag/angola-2/

Anyone have any similar African airport stories?

BuildingMyBento

I've been asked for baksheesh in CAI a couple of times; one of those times involved me getting pushed out of Terminal 1 by someone, and then being asked for a tip. That's it.

The only time I was really threatened for a bribe was at the NAIA terminal at MNL. I walked to a fast food place a few minutes away from the building, then when I tried to come back in through the parking lot, a guard demanded 500 pesos.

jphripjah

Aside from the baksheesh issue, I guess people who don't travel a lot in foreign countries should be aware that if you have an e-ticket, it's not easy in many foreign countries to just enter the airport and walk up to the check in desk without a showing a printed itinerary. You can do that in Western-type countries, but in the developing world, you should always carry hard copies of your itineraries that you may need to show at the airport entrance, the entrance to the check in area, etc.

tkey75

Heck, even in Tokyo I've confounded them with a mobile boarding pass.

FlyIgglesFly

Yeah, I always carry a copy just in case, but in most countries you can press the issue and be let through anyway. That may be because a single, western male traveller doesn't exactly seem like a person who doesn't have a ticket in Djibouti airport or wherever.

gqZJzU4vusf0Z2,$d7

I remember a TSA screener @ MCO with a wheelchair, offering to expedite screening.
She wanted a $5 [cough] donation to sit in her wheelchair and be rolled to the head of
the line.

B747-437B

You might be surprised by the proportion of single, western, male travelers hanging out at Djibouti airport - mainly due to the multiple military facilities there.

GUWonder

The American and French presence -- amongst others -- is substantial. And we have good internet service at the military facilities there.

I can't recall any of my associates at the airport there without a ticket if flying commercially.

FlyIgglesFly

Oh I know, I was just throwing that out as an example in Africa. On entry there it took me a little while to convince the immigration officer that I could not produce my military ID because...I don't have a military ID.

The hotel (Sheraton) was funny though, it was German MPs, shady lone/small groups of fit, bearded travellers in their 20s and 30s...and a group of 20 loud, obnoxious, drunk Italians in Speedos on their way to the pool.