As has been mentioned, wallets can conceal razor blades and other possible weapons. The old method of simply putting the wallet on a small basket, bypassing the metal detector, is obviously less secure.

The jacket is the same idea. With a jacket on, it's hard to do a visual search or a patdown. That's why they prefer to simply X-ray it.

Personally, I put all my change, gum packet [the tinfoil sets off metal detectors], wallet, and belt into my jacket pockets and just pass the whole jacket through. You can't walk off with my jacket without me noticing.

Because of these:

http://www.1sks.com/store/microtech-option-2.html

or maybe these:
http://www.swissarmydepot.com/swiss....age&sku=564065

or perhaps these:

http://www.selfdefenseproducts.com/rigidstainless.htm

Regards,
-Bouncer-
PS: I actually have the Swiss Army one. Invaluable lil tool, I check it through and put it back in my wallet after I land.

[This message has been edited by Bouncer (edited 11-12-2001).]

I was asked at CAK (small regional airport with ONE security machine/metal detector for all gates) to remove the batteries from my cell phone and put the phone & batteries through the xray separately. I politely declined and told the security person if she wanted to make a call to verify the phone, that was fine, but I wasn't about to reprogram 200+ names into the phone because they were worried it wasn't really a phone....

She let me put the battery cover & phone through separately (battery still in it's rightful place).

I flew back from... uh, I think it was BUF this past weekend, and they were making everything in pockets go through the x-ray in what must be the world's flimsiest little plastic container. They were also making all the coats go through. And, of course, all the bags -- with the laptops pulled out of the cases.

The end result was that there was a massive pileup of bags at the end, as people were slowed going through. It got to where it was backed up to the x-ray machine itself, and the belt kept piling them in. Someone tried to grab their bag, and one of those flimsy little containers snapped. Pocket change, bits of paper, scattered dollar bills, nuts and bolts, and more went scattering in every which direction.

It was a mess, in short, moreso since the nuts and bolts were apparently needed for some sort of medical equipment the man's daughter had. I noticed that most of the plastic containers were broken in some fashion, probably from getting all smashed up....

Just wait'll wintertime -- when hats, gloves, scarves and heavy coats will go into the mix, too.

Not to mention the Barnum & Bailey routine once the hubs get hit with 20,000 pax trying to rebook canceled flights because of the usual snow/sleet/ice delays on the tarmac.

Hee hee, right about then we'll all be HAPPY they've cut back capacity by 20 percent.

And you thought the summer of 2000 was grim.

Possible explanation - the metal detectors do not do a good as good a job of finding metal that is "shielded" by non metalic stuff. A thick coat, a thick wallet, or your hand in your pocket can make it harder for the machine to find something. This should come as no surprise. Again, the problem is that there are no standards at the airports that say that ALL overcoats be put on the belts. Some airports in Europe require this.

Ken, you're a genius! (I do the same thing )

Isn't it amazing how fast you get through when you don't have to stop to unload your pockets?

The numbers on your cellphone are stored in static memory. Removing the battery will not erase them. If it doesn than have either a very very unusual cellphone or your phone is broken.

As others have said, it is easiest just to take everything out of pockets, and also jewelry, and place it in a pocket of a carry-on. My rollaboard has a small pocket at the top of teh front. I keep it empty just for thi spurpose. Before getting to the security area, I place everything (except for photo ID and boarding pass or e-ticket receipt) into the pocket, and close it up. Then I absolutely refuse to place my bag on the belt until the person in front of me has passed completely through the metal detector and I can move on through and have a line of sight with my bag. This way, even if I am pulled aside and wanded or patted down, I can always watch my belongings.

There is nothing that compares to the stroking of one's ego. skofarrell I take back everything that I've ever said about Canadians. However I will continue to laugh at all Southpark Canadian jokes

This is a very important point to remember with any item that you place on the belt. Never let it out of your sight, and wait for the path through the detector to be totally clear. Earlier this year one of the evening news shows showed video tapes of laptop bags being stolen when someone stopped short and bumped the victim at the detector and his partner picked up his bag on the other side and walked out of the airport. Of course this will be extremely difficult to do with the present state of security at the airports and the checking of ID's and tickets before reaching the detector.

[This message has been edited by Rssrsvp (edited 11-08-2001).]

I could really care less it we let this stuff on board. It poses NO danger any longer. The hijackings were successful not because they got boxcutters and knives on board, but rather because up to that point, everyone thought that cooperation and patience was the safest way to deal with a hijacking as eventually the hijackers must land. We now know differently and no one will ever again gain control of the plane with this type of stuff. It's truly a non-issue at this point. Oh sure, some A-hole could try to attack crewmembers or passengers but hey, bare hands and other items in the plane can do even more damage. In short, I think this is all a little silly. I would feel extremely safe even if EVERYONE on board was carrying a pocket knife. It just doesn't matter. ....just my two cents..thank you.

And this crap about razor blades could be in your wallet is foolish. Get real, it would be easy to get blades through security, right through the x-ray machines. Use your imagination. Though any moron could figure it out, I am not going to place the how to here in fear of being arrested for some reason.

I don't disagree with either of your viewpoints. In fact I've been saying the days of the peaceful hijack were over since the 11th of September.

Still not the point though, that's the kind of thing they're looking for with wallets.

You have to remeber, the gov't and airlines have to be seen to be doing something. Doesn't matter if it's the wrong thing or not. This isn't about security, it's about perception of security.

Regards,
-Bouncer-

No, if you lose anything at security, you're on your own. (But if someone does disappear with someone else's things, security tends to be concerned)

Now, if the feds start running security, you may be able to make a claim....