Originally Posted by
RustyC
I've never transited through a Chinese airport (unless you count HKG). Do you mean carry-ons here? I've certainly had the NRT experience many times, though they don't tend to stop many people for going through everything.
Much worse is MEX where they wanted transit passengers to go through THEIR customs with both checked and carry-on bags as if they were arriving passengers 
and then come back in as if you were starting the flight there.
Have also gotten the jetway ambush many times, either randomly or checking everyone.
What nerve! I can't imagine that there would be any other country that has such arcane rules for international transit passengers ;-)
Transiting in PVG is similar to PEK, except that PVG is a better airport and the security people at PEK are ridiculously uptight as another poster mentions above. I hate flying into or from PEK.