Common Craft Blog
What's Missing From This Sign at Airport Security?
By leelefever on December 08, 2008 - 4:47pm
Me (to the friendly TSA ID checker): Do I have to remove my laptop computer?
TSA Employee: Yes, you do.
Me: It's not listed on the sign
TSA Employee: Well, it's the most important thing to remove.
Me: But not important enough to be on the sign?
TSA: It's supposed to be on there, the people that printed it messed up (rolls eyes).
The TSA folks have hard jobs and I appreciate what they do. However, it doesn't exactly give me a safe feeling when the instructions for moving through the line efficiently are "messed up" and no on seems to care.
x-ray
Why do you need to remove laptops at airports anyway? Beats me. I thought the whole point of x-ray machines is that they can see through bags...
why you have to remove your laptop
@Eliot,
While it is true that x-ray machines check for explosives, laptop bags are sometimes dense enough to conceal something that may be hidden. Also, by removing your laptop from the bag, it makes it far less of a hassle to scan whatever else may be in the laptop bag. For example, a knife or something else could easily be snuck onto a plane in a thick laptop bag, with the laptop in it. But with the laptop out, their machines would be more likely to pick up the knife and thus remove it before it causes potential harm. Just an example.
X Ray
I don't know if this is exactly true, but I heard that if you are one of the lucky ones that gets pulled out of the security line the put you into an x ray machine that x rays your whole body. Has anyone else heard of this?
Airport security is theatre.
Read this:
http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200811/airport-security
Airport Security
Christian,
Are you referring to the TSA Millimeter scanners that were introduced in the summer in select high volume airports. It was done as a pilot with the goal of expanding into additional airports.
Regarding the signage, I agree, it should be up to date, but with airport rules changing so frequently, it may be tough to keep up with all the changes. As an example, up until recently, you could take liquids on board the plane, but that has changed. Perhaps if they have trouble keeping up with signage, they should keep it more generic, something like all electronics are subject to inspection.
Last point, as to why they check the laptops, I've found the practice is different from airport to airport and I do fly fairly frequently. In some of the smaller airports, I'm asked to just turn on my laptop, proving it is a real laptop. At larger airports, they often swab the laptop and check it for chemical residuals.
Mike
Reply
Yeah, that is what I ment. My brother came in from Tampa over thanksgiving holiday and he told me that he was selected to be placed into the x-ray system. He said he got a little embarrassed since he thinks they can see through your clothing.
The missing sign
It is indeed weird/odd/bad etcetera that such a substancial 'screw-up' is not being fixed/modified/changed :-)
Those signs must've been
Those signs must've been printed in Miami. Down here they'd arrest you for "questioning" them.
Digg This!
http://digg.com/comedy/Take_off_Your_Shoes_and_XBOX_at_Airport_Security
I thought this entry was hilarious, give it props on Digg
signs
@kevin,
arrest? isn't it they are stationed there to assist aside from security?
TSA
As a frequent flier and having a spouse in the airline industry the TSA is often the subject of our conversations. It seems that recently the trend has been towards relaxing some of the TSA requirements and streamlining the screening process. TSA screeners are put in awkward positions due to constantly changing rules, which many times they themselves are unsure of, and the publics natural dislike of being herded and giving up some privacy. I try to make my experience and their job as painless as possible by being educated on current screening requirements.
Laptops
I've always took my Apple out of the sleeve case until yesterday when in St.Petersburg a TSA agent told me that there was no need to take laptop from a slim case and she actually showed me the sign - different from the above - that explained all. This has been in effect since this August
"Full Size DVD Player" as opposed to a personal sized one...
First, I'd be wondering if I had remembered my Full Size TV, and whether or not I have to take that out of it's box... Heck, that icon can *almost* pass for a laptop (closed), so they might as well just write in with marker "and laptops"...
I bet that the person who typeset the poster said, "hey, don't we need to put 'laptops' in here?"
And the higher-up said, "naw, everyone knows that laptops are the most important. I need this printed like yesterday so hurry up!!"
oh?
I am actually surprised that they allow you to take this photo behind customs.
How dumb can I be I thought
How dumb can I be I thought they ask you to remove the laptop because there is risk the xray corrupt your data :|
Isn't Government Wonderful
Our tax dollars hard at work. Now, who's for bigger government?
Laptops? Hmmm... Did they
Laptops? Hmmm... Did they ask you to remove your cellular? Its not on the list either but they always ask me to do so!
It's silly but no big deal
It's certainly foolish to have the signs like that; but it's no big deal. Sometimes I leave my pepper spray in my pocket when I travel in the Philippines, and even though it could be a bomb (even pepper spray alone is a weapon!) it does right through the conveyor and they have let me carry it on in my pocket several times. Now that is more serious.
Cell phone
Maybe they think it comes under the category of "full size video game consoles"!!
Breathing Machine
I think they understand that you cannot breathe without your laptop, so they put laptop into category "Breathing Machine". Most bloggers cannot live without laptop as laptop is their breathing machine :-)
of course
funny situation..they always miss the most important things :)
Security Lapses
What shocks me is the utter difference in accuracy of the walk-through scanners. On a recent trip I went through four different airports, some scanners beeped if I had a coin, another didn't make a noise as I walked through with my iPhone, a pocket full of change and a belt buckle.
However the most shocking thing was on a particularly blurry-eyed morning I walked through security only to be chastised for carrying on a bottle of water. I argued with them that I'd just bought it and I'd drink it in front of them if they liked (like what you do with baby food). They still took it off me. I got through to the other end and found by pen knife was still in my pocket!!
What's Missing...
You know what's missing from the sign? Common Sense!