[K1ngston]

+1 MrDarwin I am the first to complain about the appalling service at LHR and have done so many times, but went through Fast Track Term 4 on Sunday morning and it was a pleasant experience and even had time to share a joke with the cretin on duty who smiled and was full of the joys of spring! … Align that with another great flight by MH back to Singapore via KL, and Singapore efficiency at this end made the whole experience joyful!!!!

[barnacles]

I apologise for the length of this post, but the content bears re-hashing. I wrote recently to the head of Heathrow Airports following an unfortunate experience at T4, as follows.

“Dear Mr Holland-Kaye

T4 SECURITY – A JOKE?

I travelled recently through T4, carrying inadvertently with my hand luggage two clear plastic bags, not one, with liquids in containers of 100ml in each of them. I was stopped by your security official and asked to ‘re-pack’ them so that all the items fitted in one bag, which then “must be sealed”.

I protested that this was likely not to be possible; to avoid delaying the queue building up behind me I was asked to step aside while I fiddled around. It proved impossible to squeeze all the items into one sealed bag, so I did the best I could, left some items in the pockets of my coat which was in the same plastic tray, explained to the gentleman who had, in the meantime, taken over from the lady who originally stopped me that the bag wouldn’t seal, and went through Security.

The tray and all my liquids went through unchallenged. I discovered when I repacked afterwards that a tube of toothpaste had also passed through the machine, although being inadvertently left loose in my case.

I suppose my experience begs several questions. First, although your first operative was technically correct in stopping me with two, not one, see-through 1litre bags, what was the point of doing so? Does the machine tire if asked to screen more than one bag per passenger? If liquids can pass through anyway, whether in a pocket or a bag (or both, in my case), why do you bother to enforce the rules in such a draconian way? In Hong Kong on my way home I left my liquids in my hand luggage, as instructed, and took as many through as I wanted – is HKG a ‘less safe’ airport than LHR? The lady behind me in the queue at LHR discovered a lipstick and some gel in a pocket, and was told that it would be OK to leave them loose in the tray alongside her plastic bag of 100ml goodies – why the inconsistency?

I look forward to hearing from you or one of your colleagues in due course, with specific answers to my questions.”

Heathrow’s director of security Tom Willis replied with the usual blather about EU restrictions etc, and then said “I appreciate your concern about the toothpaste you were carrying as well as your comments about the lady behind you in security queue and I have raised this with our security team. We do appreciate that any inconsistency is frustrating for passengers and as such would expect security officers to be clear when explaining any restrictions or procedures that may be required.

I am sorry that this wasn’t the case on your journey, but we would welcome the opportunity to regain your confidence on a future visit.”

No mention, therefore, of the lack of investment in the kind of machines and procedures that HKG has, or any comment as to whether that airport is ‘safe’ or not. We live in an unreal world . . .

[PeterCoultas]

Other than the very slow progress through LHR my only recent problem was a small tim of caviar – they didn’t know about such a strange “tororist” (as Geo Bush says) item….

Leeds is much better, although you are asked to remove items like liquids in your litre bag, if you don’t the bag goes through with no problem!

Amazing then that in the USA there is now no need to take anything out – recent transfers at Newark went like a dream (though the checked bags went on a flight tour of their own arriving much later than us)

[WillieWelsh]

I think as others have said here the only function of security at LHR is to keep the worried worried, for everyone else it’s an inconvenience. After all, you wouldn’t want to believe your safety in the air depended on the screening carried out there.

And while this is about T4, I could really rant about my experience of the new extra slow track at T5 south earlier this week. It would be difficult to imagine how something relatively simple could have been more badly organised and f***ed up. The ordinary lane was about three times faster. At least I have no more bookings on BA so won’t be suffering it again.

[K1ngston]

+1 barnacles, I too spit nails at the inconsistency of LHR in particular! I hate the cretins that man the machines, but recognise the fact they have a job to do, and should they be professional, polite and most importantly consistent we would all know where we stand!

The fact is they are “none of the above” and unlike the masses I cannot just file through and effectively be abused by some jumped up jobsworth… I will always challenge their nonsense even if it means I will be singled out, I don’t like them and I will make it my business to let them know!

A few years ago, this was happening in the US the birth place of these draconian measures, and there were lots of people like me and others who were very vociferous about it and the TSA listened to the endless complaints and now the experience is not unpleasant if laborious, there is always a smile and generally the queues wend quite quickly, but more importantly they are consistent and you know where you stand!

Lets be fair if the Americans can do it so can the leaders of the cretins at LHR, the process at LHR is a joke and makes the whole experience unpleasant at best… Having travelled through LGW recently through Fast Track they have started to get it right and was very efficient and US like so it can be done!

[NTarrant]

The problem is that there are too many inconsistencies with security. Quite a few years ago I was told by an Eastern European female security officer in Jersey who nearly spoke English that my 100ml talcum powder should be with liquids. When I said it wasn’t a liquid she said “I advise” so when I returned the next week through LGW I put it in with liquids to be told by security at LGW “that’s not a liquid sir”. I explained and he just said “they don’t know what they are doing”

Leeds Bradford last year, talcum powder again, “this should be with liquids sir”
“it’s talcum powder, it’s not a liquid”
“But is like a gel sir”
“It’s a powder not a gel”
“The rules say it should be in the plastic bag”
“Please show me where the signs say talcum powder has to be with liquids”
“It doesn’t specifically say talcum powder, but it’s the same as gels or liquids”
“How is it the same as aged or liquid?”
“I don’t know sir, it’s the rules”
“Who’s rules?”
“Urrmmm the airport”
Yet the talcum powder in my wife’s bag went through without any problems!

[SimonS1]

Indeed the inconsistency is a real pain. I put it down to the staff turnover, I imagine the airports are forever having to train people in these things.

I’m surprised you got so far with the conversation at LBA though, normally well before then the standard line of “we don’t have to be abused by people like you” has been thrown in.

[NTarrant]

I have to say SimonS1 that I did feel I had pushed it farther than I intended and just accepted what he said with a huff.

[K1ngston]

But asking questions should not be deemed as abusive behaviour in anyway shape or form, the fact they have hired people that cannot string a sentence together should not be our fault!

[Author]

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