LHR security at it's worst

[mitchja]

Going though LHR T1 domestic security yesterday for my flight back to MAN I encountered LHR security at it's absolute worst.

4 lanes (out of 5 in total) where open and the I still had to queue for almost 20 minutes (the 4 queues were backed up to where the agent checks your boarding card as you enter the security area), bearing in mind this was just for domestic/ROI flights and nothing else [:0]. I got in the wrong line as well as the first line (on the far left) is also used for staff so they just push in in front of pax. What? Why dont staff have their own security (like any half decent airport, oh wait, but this is LHR we are talking about)

I witnessed staff operating the x-ray scanners simply stareing up at the ceiling rather than doing what they are supposed to be doing and watching their x-ray monitor screens. I guess the scanners have built in shape-recognition software but I dont really know. What's the point of scanning anything when the staff dont actually look at what is going though the scanners [:?]

From putting my bag/shoes/lap-top onto the scanner I had to wait nearly 5 minutes to get them off at the other end as the staff kept having to re-scan items, putting bags back though several times.

When pax walk though the detectors and they beep, rather than standing to one side to allow anonther pax though whilst they are manually scanned, you have to stand directly in-front of the detector and so stopping the flow of pax until each pax is manually cleared.

God helps us all if they relax the one bag rule. Domestic security is almost at breaking point now as it is.

The experience I enountered yesterday at LHR really does make TSA look good and as I'm sure most of you know, that really is saying something [:w]

Regards

I've often wondered if the metal detectors are set to go off randomly as well, as I've set them off before, then wearing very similar clothes, not set them off.

When pax walk though the detectors and they beep, rather than standing to one side to allow anonther pax though whilst they are manually scanned, you have to stand directly in-front of the detector and so stopping the flow of pax until each pax is manually cleared.

At least that way the staff shouldn't miss anyone, and pay more attention to what's going on, instead of trying to pat someone down and miss someone walking through they may want to search anyway.

I was quite happy with my recent experience of the TSA at JFK on my last trip. No issues at all, except some odd looks at my laptop when it was scanned. As I had it on a short time before, maybe it showed an odd heat signature, but they swabbed it, and looked at it, and I went on my way. The normal queue though was shorter than the fast track one, but I didn't have to queue for long anyway.

[honey lamb]

Originally posted by locutus
I've often wondered if the metal detectors are set to go off randomly as well, as I've set them off before, then wearing very similar clothes, not set them off.

Yes they are. On my last trip through Fast Track at the end of october I noticed that a significantly high number of people were having secondary searches, including me. I commented on it to the lady doing the pat-down and she told me the machines do make random selections and I was one of them.

They are Random, I wear the same clothes when I travel, washed between trips of course ! And a few months ago triggered the bleep, and I said to the guy patting me down, this must be a random beep, and he confirmed it was.