What's in my shoe? (1 Viewer)

[Jay H]

Just going through airport security these days is an adventure in itself...
EWR->SEA
SEA->JNU
JNU->SGY
SGY->JNU
JNU->ANC
ANC->SEA
SEA->EWR
I think of those 7 flights, I got searched about 3 times and two of those flights are with small Cessna 206s with no real security measures. Heck, I was behind the pilot watching him fly 8k ASL for most of the trip so out of the 5 valid flights, I get searched about 3 times. Each unfortunate employee having to smell my horrible feet after 5 days in the woods!!!! I'm surprised they didn't have to evacuate the terminal due to air spores.
Supposedly a random process but my ass, I did not see any small child being searched, Most of the time it was a lone male and 60% of my valid flights, it was me. A single asian male flying perhaps on a single journey... Sounds like profiling to me. But heck, at least I didn't have to explain to the guy what a Petzl Tikka headlight is or what a Garmin Etrex Vista does. (They didn't manage to find the pockets in my daypack, thank heavens)
As a warning to others, make sure you don't dilly dally before checking into the gates. Security will take a good 30 minutes at some of the larger airports...even during the night.
Jay "smelly feet" h

 

[ollie_k]

My home airport is O'hare, and I think security is a joke there compared to the places I've flown.

The most extensive for me so far is Frankfurt Germany. No less than 3 checkpoints...
Once at ticket counter line, a full interview w/passport check.
Ticket counter again with passport check
X-ray/metal detector line
Full pat down/wand jobbie -I also had to take my shoes off for trip through xray.
Then, official passport control to leave the country?!!

Once inside the terminal I noticed another checkpoint just to get to the El Al airline gate (Israeli airline)

 

[Neil Joseph]

Miami airport was a real treat. I had to take my shoes off twice going one way, and then coming back too. Next time I will just take different shoes.

 

[Francois Caron]

Unfortunately, ever since this one nut tried to set off the explosives hidden in the soles of his shoes one one flight, airport security now has to search people's shoes for signs of anything unusual.

 

[Michael*K]

I agree with Ollie that security at O'Hare doesn't seem nearly as tight. Since 9/11 I've never been held up there at security checkpoints and I've never been screened there. I have been screened three times on the return trips though (once in Hartford and twice in Baltimore.) I don't know what the crietria for screening is. I do know that my 57 year old mother was screened coming out of Baltimore last week so it's not just young men being singled out. In her case, the screening was more than the usual inconvenience I deal with. She was flying Southwest (an airline with no pre-flight seat assignments) and when she got pulled out of line to be searched, the screening took so long that when she got on the flight there were no window or aisle seats left.

 

[Jay H]

One guy even decided to run that metal wand on my socks, while my shoes were off. Gee, maybe I'll hide my metal nail file down there. But actually, I think the gov must have made metal nail files legal again because some airports had a specific list of things that are illegal as carry-on, And I could see "Metal Nail File" on the list but having duct tape over the words such that apparently, they are now legal carry-on items. I see that we can't take ski poles onto the plane but that doesn't seem to include trekking poles.

It seems the maximum checkpoints here is also 3. At EWR, I had to run my baggage through a funky x-ray machine at checkin. And they can do a random baggage search at the gate security and then they can do a personal/shoe check at actual boarding time. I've hit 2 of the 3 but not all 3 so far.

Jay

 

[Andrej Dolenc]

Hehe, I bet the security droids are going to completely freak out when I fly with 2 rollerblades with foot long metal frames attached to them in carry-on. (They can lose my luggage, but they aren't going to lose my skates and keep me from racing!)

As to shoes - I've had to take my shoes off too many times now, I make it a point to travel in shoes that are easily removed.

Andrej

 

[Garrett Lundy]

i think I'm going to start wearing highly elaborate body jewelry, with many dangly chains and such. Then I can get a free -ray where all my CBRs, barbells, and whatnot show-up on my skeleton.

Or maybe I just have too-much free time to think about this kinda stuff.