Airport Security Search Staff

As a frequent flyer I get really pissed off with the different security standards at each airport.

- my shoes active the sensors in Dublin Airport only
- Only Dublin Airport x-rays your laptop
- Only US Airports appear to x-ray your shoes
- etc.

Surely there should be a common standard if the risks are the same?

All that 'security' stuff is just to make the general public think that it is safe to fly after 9/11.

Five minutes analysis would uncover obvious flaws. For example, they'll confiscate nail scissors but allow people to purchase glass bottles of duty free on board a plane.

If someone wants to highjack or blow up a plane, they will succeed.

Lemurz,

Dublin likes to x-ray your shoes now too - this is their latest fetish .. they are the only place in Europe i've ever seen this done.

The Laptop fetish was also (amongst Euro airports) peculiar to Dublin - I've seen it in Prague too but never anywhere else in Europe that I can recall.

Heathrow always used to have a coat fetish but never cared about laptops, shoes. Dublin doesn't care about coats too much even still - if you ask they'll make you put it through but they don't generally make you do so.

The newly introduced xraying of Belts is also peculiar to Dublin

It does seem rather random sometimes - it would probably be easier to just put all the passengers through the xray machine - might save time!

The shoes/belts x-raying have been introduced because of the flaws which were found a few weeks ago. I dont see the big deal to be honest - the only thing that annoys me is the people who watch everyone before them take off their shoes and then go up to the top of the line and ask 'Do I have to do that as well ?'. They are usually the people who on the other side of the machine start putting their shoes back on right in the middle of the aisle. Then they're the first to give out about the queues.

If it was genuinely improving security then it would be fine, but it's only giving the impression of security. Last time I went through they 'thought they spotted an umbrella' in one of my bags and had to check it out. Fair enough. But they proceeded to check the wrong bag, despite my telling them that the umbrella I had with me was in my other bag. Shouldn't they have checked both bags? Rescanned the bags? Something? Just as well the hadn't 'though they spotted a gun/bomb'.

What about the fact that their now letting people use real snives and forks on planes again?! They were obviously unsafe in our hands two years ago...but now it's okay seemingly!!

I'm just back from the states, the security was more hassle in Dublin leaving (shoes off, belt off, jacket off) than in Chicago who just x-rayed the jacket

"The Laptop fetish was also (amongst Euro airports) peculiar to Dublin - I've seen it in Prague too but never anywhere else in Europe that I can recall"

I'm on a wee tour of Europe at the moment and can tell you first hand that this fetish is not unique to Dublin.

London: Great signage of what do do while you are waiting, no Laptop check
Madrid: No indication of their rules Laptop Fetish!!
Athens: Nicest security people I've ever come across No LT fetish
Frankfurt: Badly organised queue no indication of what is exected LT fetish
Brussels: Dont know yet I'm still here ....edit 20/05 16:48 security is fine here small queue no Laptop fettish

If the rules were universal and everyone knew them, we could bloody well strip off in the line for all I care. But this "It's Paris I must remove me socks" mularkey is a pain

BTW don't get me going on Air Traffic strikes, two in a week and it's only Thursday
QP

EvilDoctorK said:

Dublin likes to x-ray your shoes now too - this is their latest fetish .. they are the only place in Europe i've ever seen this done.

The Laptop fetish was also (amongst Euro airports) peculiar to Dublin -

Click to expand...

Dublin, Zurich and Boston always check laptops and and shoes. I travel frequently through the 3 and find them pretty much similiar security wise.

What I find interesting is the security gate/scanner itself, (not the luggage one), a colleague in work has pins in his arm from a rugby accident. He claims that he sets some of them off but not all, this would imply that they have different sensitivity strengths. Again, back to the original posters question, shouldnt there be a standard for htat?
cas.

A few years ago, I made a lot of journeys through Dublin Airport within a short space of time, and it just happened that I wore the same belt on 3 seperate occasions. Once I set of the metal detector, removed the belt, walked through and all was ok. Both other times the same belt did not set off the detector, and I just breezed through, no questions asked.