Any terrorists about?

[The Natural Philosopher]

I think we spent a total of 7 hours in airports for a 2 hour flight.

[newshound]

Eddy current metal detectors in the UK, I don't think we are routinely x-raying people, as in Total Recall :-).

[Scott M]

Or, more cleverly, it's a way to convince the travelling terrorist that their super new smuggling system isn't going to work so there's no point trying.

[Jethro_uk]

A very good analysis (oo err missis !) here:

strikes just the right note of non-hysteria.

[Jethro_uk]

When the Israelis stop a car for a search, they perform the search at least 100 metres away from the queue - the obvious point being that if there is a bomb, and it detonates, it won't take too many innocents with it.

When UK police "search" for "bombs" they do it in line. Which leads me to conclude that they have no concern for the safety of the queue, or they have no expectation of finding a bomb.

[Jethro_uk]

Because it helps the good people think like bad people ?

I'm curious as to why terrorists are so infatuated with air travel - which affects a tiny minority of the population. I can think of far more straightforward ways of terrorising the population which are incredibly low-tech. Which rather makes me wonder if the terrorists are being as honest with us as our own security services.

[Andy Burns]

How does that stop someone detonating it while they're still in the queue, before they're asked to drive forward to be searched? All it does is make the bomber choose between taking out innocents and taking out police/military, they can't take out both at once.

[F]

We were in the queue to go through security in Mombasa Airport a few years ago just a week after someone had been picked up trying to get a gun through. A woman in the queue started moaning at length about the ten or so minute delay the extra checks were taking. She shut up when I asked if she would prefer a two minute fall from 30,000 feet.

Some people just don't think it through...

[Jethro_uk]

From the clips I saw, the cars are separated before inspection. The point being they were clearly *serious* about there being a chance of there being a bomb.

Watching the UK Keystone cops makes it clear it's all a show. Just like the "tanks at Heathrow" stunt a few years back. Luckily that was rightly derided by everyone, so put some sort of line in place.

Don't forget, it's not the terrorists, the government is afraid of - it is it's own citizens.

[F]

Driving at high speed is similarly safe. It's the quick stop when you hit something solid that does the damage.

[F]

On more than one occasion we have spent more time between push back and the wheels leaving the runway at Heathrow than we were actually in the air between there and Leeds Bradford.

[newshound]

Two reasons.

1) Passenger plane targets get a big media profile

2) The "high mile" travellers are generally high profile people: CEOs, pop stars, etc, so strikes disproportionately hit the top 0.1%.

[Jethro_uk]

Fair point

I've never heard this as a reason for targeting airplanes ... if 9/11 took out a higher proportion of high-earners, it's more likely because they were *in* the twin towers, than the planes.

Anyway, there are many simple, and hard to counter ways to bring terror to the population than concentrating on small, highly protected areas. And given that the great British public are quite capable of terrorising themselves, with paedo scares and horsemeat scandals, it's debatable as to whether they'd notice any more.

[Tim Watts]

Sounds about right.

3 hours to arrive, lose car, check in (could be 2 hours, but you always need padding for transport delays unless you are in an airport hotel). 1 hour getting out the other end if you are lucky!

Best airport - Riga in 1997. Walk across tarmac - show passport at one of 2 huts, through door into hall. Road is 30m away the otherside of the large hall. Hole in wall where they literally lobbed the suitcases through.

Out in about 25 minutes!

[F]

Masai Mara.

Having a drink in the open air watching elephants and a waitress comes up to us and announces 'You're plane is waiting sir.' We climb into a Land Rover alongside the pilots and are driven to the plane on the grass airstrip. The pilot opens the door to the plane, bags are thrown on, he asks us to fasten belts and points out the 'emergency exit (the door we just came through), walks to the front, climbs in his seat and we take off.

Priceless!

[Chris J Dixon]

Västerås used to be like that in the 70s, long before the cheap flight merchants flew folk there bound for Stockholm.

Chris

[Tim Watts]

Style :)

Was that an internal flight? If so, then I can claim that Blackwater->Brisbane (Queensland, Aus) was not far off.

"Terminal" building was a portacabin. Get dropped off in a car park and sit on the benches. "Terminal" door opens and we are invited to show tickets briefly and chuck our bag on the scales.

10 minutes later, they open the wire netting gate and we walk onto the plane and take off. OK - they did have tarmac.

That really was like getting on a bus, but with less chewing gum on the floor...

[Tim Streater]

That's an improvement. No airstrip when I was there in '75.

[F]

Mombasa - Masai Mara - Mombasa in a Twin Otter.

We had an 'interesting' view of Kilimanjaro: we had to look *up* to see the summit.

[dennis]

A bit slow then.

Cicargo, arrived late for plane. took about 4 minutes to get through security. ran to check in got to gate as they were closing it. told we couldn't get our luggage in hold as it was too late and it would be put on a later flight. went down to plane shut doors behind us and pushed off.

About 15 mins total.

And when we got to the other end we had our bags so someone must have took them down the step and chucked them in the hold.