Originally Posted by
lhrsfo
I find security at SFO to be a nightmare compared to LHR. Being shouted at, changing their minds on laptops, requiring shoes to be taken off and numerous other weird rules to make life unpleasant, combined with rude staff. And a hopelessly antiquated queuing and unloading system. LHR has to be one of the easiest to transit. Just follow the few and simple rules.
I recently transited at both HEL and LHR T3; there was no comparison, LHR was much stricter. Arriving at HEL from the US, I did not have to clear security before proceeding to board my flight to BER. At LHR, arriving from HEL, I had to queue up behind dozens at security. The line in which I originally stood did not move due to some issue with a previous passenger or the CT scanner. After I was allowed to move to another lane and take a place at the head of the line - short connection - it was mostly like going through PreCheck in the US except that I had to remove my liquids bag from my carry on bag, take off my sportcoat and pass through a whole body scanner instead of a metal detector. Getting the trays with my luggage and other personal items through the automated feeder into the CT scanner proved to be a challenge, as other passengers' bags kept filling up the empty spaces on the conveyor belt.