Airport security is rubbish. Fact.

[Whiternoise]

I went with my better half to Paris for a long weekend (just got back, having butchered my inbox). We flew from Heathrow to Charles-De-Gaulle; normally the Eurostar would have been a preferable choice, but it was too expensive this time. We travelled light, not wanting to lug around suitcases so I checked my tripod in its bag, along with my penknife and other sharp bits. Anyone who's been on a flight in the last few years will know about the liquid laws - no liquids in your hand baggage unless they're in <100ml bottles and will fit into a little plastic bag that you put through the scanners separately. Turns out this isn't quite as effective as you might think.

After getting through security without a hitch, my girlfriend discovered that she'd managed to leave a bottle of hand wash, the alcohol stuff, in her rucksack - which security hadn't noticed. Given that last year I was stopped en route to Germany because I had fountain pen cartridges in my pencil case, this was a bit surprising. On the way back, I found that I'd managed to leave a tube of toothpaste in my rucksack going through French security. Again, nobody commented. On the plus side, I discovered that my rucksack's inner pockets are totally waterproof after it burst.

Thankfully we're not terrorists and you might well, and rightly, say that some hand wash and toothpaste aren't going to bring down a plane so why worry?

The problem is there is a lot of pomp and high-horsing when it comes to airport security and it's a bit disconcerting that these sort of things are missed. I personally think it's an annoying system to have to throw away your coke bottle before you board only to buy another more expensive one in 'Duty Free', but I grudgingly accept it on the basis that now terrorists can't smuggle along their explosive liquids. All well and good, but only if the security staff are actually on the ball. If they're not going to check 100% - this stuff *does* show up on the scanners, I've been caught out previously - then why check at all?

[Jay]

I came back from Africa a few weeks back and I was allowed to walk into the airport with a bottle of water, through checkin, through the scanners, into the waiting room and onto the flight.

I also spent a lot of time in Nairobi airport and spotted a really stupid mistake in their security that would allow you to get anything small enought to fit in your pocket onto the flight even though they have metal detectors.

[Biscuit]

Honestly, id rather be blown up than deal with all the scare mongering.

[Rave]

Yes me too. I'd quite happily sign an 'I don't care if I'm blown up' disclaimer to avoid all this nonsense.

[DDY]

Yes me too. I'd quite happily sign an 'I don't care if I'm blown up' disclaimer to avoid all this nonsense.

This doesn't have anything to do with all that hydrogen peroxide you bought last week, right?

[Lanky123]

Well on the flip side of the coin I flew back from the US recently and for all the hassle it was, I did at least feel like it would be hard for anyone to get through with anything they shouldn't.

You had to remove shoes and *anything* from pockets (not just metal) to be x-rayed with your hand luggage and go through one of those full body scanners with arms in the air. If you objected to the full body scanner you could go through an old fashioned metal detector one and then have a very thorough pat down whether it beeped or not.

Several of our party (not including me) were required to partake in a full body search and we eventually worked out that it must have been because they had gone to a gun range in the same clothes earlier in the trip and traces of gunpowder had triggered one of the machines. Irrelevant though it may be I will mention that the security checks done at the gun range were the polar opposite of those at the airport.

[TeePee]

I once went through security with two large bottles of contact lense solution. I was asked 'Why do you need two?' To which I replied 'I have two eyes'. I was waved through.

[Rave]

This doesn't have anything to do with all that hydrogen peroxide you bought last week, right?

No, I'm just not a scaredycat pussy.

If I ever fall afoul of some European Arrest Warrant idiocy, and get put on a plane against my will, I plan on using pure muscle to invade the flight deck. The locks on the cabin door can't be that strong.

[Phage]

It's all theatre.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Security_theater

[Spud1]

Indeed, it's useless - designed to put off opportunists, it will never ever stop a reasonably intelligent plot at the airport. Those plots are generally stopped before they get that far - or never get found out until it's too late.

Think about it - you can still take liquid on to the plane, just not much of it. So what do you do? You get more than 3 or 4 people to take small amounts, and then combine onboard. Simples. You want to take a firearm on board? Same again, you break up the weapon and take it on in small pieces. Easy and undetectable.

Or what if you just want to blow up a commercial jet? With the right connections (that supposedly these terrorist groups have) you go and buy an infantry SAM missile launcher (few hundred £k, not that expensive for an organised terrorist cell - probably cheaper than that from the middle east), and boom, job done. Fire it from sea if you need to, but you can do it - and even a near miss would have the desired effect.

No, airport security doesn't work - it just serves the purpose of terrorists. Their aim is not usually to kill, it's just to create mass terror and make our lives incredibly difficult. So who has really won here?

[[GSV]Trig]

Even the metal detectors are ****, mate of mine has not long had a rod put in his arm, sometimes it sets them off sometimes it doesnt..

[mikerr]

Only one way to be sure - you have to board the plane naked !

[badass]

It's all theatre.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Security_theater

Just what I was going to say.

[mkins99]

Only one way to be sure - you have to board the plane naked !

Then everyone would see my consealed weapon

[Brucelles]

Actually, I understand that European airports have agreed to an unofficial dropping of the 100ml thing. I think there's still lip-service, but no real PITA anal-probing overkill. I think it's supposed to become policy this year, perhaps it already is, I haven't flown much this year or last. Either way, the airlines and the airport authorities all thought it was a waste of time an money and agreed to drop it.

It's only anal-retentive, a-hole-filled America where they still shine a light up your bum to see if you are carrying concealed bio-weaponry.

[Brucelles]

Oh yeas, and the thing about the liquids is that you are allowed to take four 95ml bottles of contact lens fluid, but not one 110ml bottle. If I were a binary-bomb terrorist, you know what I would do?