Sunday, September 5, 2010

Airport security is BS

Yeah, I know, that's hardly news. But I had the ultimate proof when I went to Hammerfest last week. Get this.

So, I check in one item of luggage, and then of course I have one item to take on the plane with me. This is always the same, a bag that is made to the exact measurements of cabin luggage, so that I know I will never have any problems getting it on board the plane. When I travel anywhere it's usually stuffed full, and it was this time too. At Gardermoen I dump it in the security check and assume I'll have no problems, and then I go through the metal detector. Then when I go to get my bag, there's a security guard there who asks is this my bag. Yeah, sure. OK, can I please step over this way. Umm, sure, I guess. I go over to where she's standing with my bag, and she starts asking all the usual questions, did I pack it myself, etc. (What do they think people are going to answer? No, my neighbor Mohammed packed it for me?) Then she asks whether I have any liquids in the bag. No, because I'm not mentally challenged. (Which of course I didn't say, I just said no. Alas.) I have two bananas, but they're not quite liquid yet, I hope. She says OK, but it looks on the x-ray like there is something liquid there. Sure, whatever, but there's no liquid in the bag. She says OK, but that's what it looks like, so can you please open the bag and let me take a look. Well, I don't have any contraband, so of course I open up and let her check out what they figure is liquid in there. Guess what it turns out to be.

Biscuits. Seriously. These people looked at a package of Bixit oat biscuits and thought it was a bottle of water. If I'd had a bomb in there, I don't know what they would have managed to confuse that with. o_O

Current standards of airport security are BS. The authorities want to look like they're doing something, but in actual fact it's all appearances. And we all put up with it. Sheesh.

1 comment:

SnallaBolaget said...

Hey Leisha. You should probably take a look at this; http://snallabolaget.com/?page_id=666 - "How to Read an Airport Security X-Ray", and you'll understand why that happened.

Maybe you'll learn something.