Air travel...any better?

I'm flying from London to Rome in the next ten days or so.

I am concerned about carrying my camera (and my laptop) and being forced to put them in the hold

luggage (I am insured all risks but you know how these things go in a case of a claim, and besides the

value of just my Leica M kit is too high to recover from my insurers in case of loss...).

I know that things are better now, with restrictions being eased, but I hear from friends that either here in

the UK or in Rome it's all down to "luck", meaning that the officer in charge at the security desk makes his

own laws and judgement every time differently.

Anyone that has flown very recently inside Europe and has been forced to put his camera kit and/or his

laptop in the hold luggage?

This post has nothing to do with the rights or wrongs of our difficult global historical moment, it's just to

hear from someone who's flown recently if things are back to normal (if normal can be called...).

Thanks

Just flew back from Malaga Spain to London Stansted with Easyjet. No problems at all. Just asked if I had a cigarette lighter. I was able to take two very large hand baggage items (there was 2 of us) that would most probably, both be techincally be outside normal airline regulations under normal conditions.

 

I think going out of UK is a very different experience from arriving into UK from anywhere else other than from US.

 

Quite simply my recent experience from Spain to UK was as if nothing had happened at all regarding secutity.

 

Just as a footnote.

According to my taxi driver, it seems the delays being experienced at Stansted on my return were up to 45 minute delays for baggage to arrive from the planes.

A colleague and his mother arrived back from a visit to Italy last week with 20 litres of pure Olive oil all in 5 litre cans held in large sports bags. The two of them probably had the same weight of hand baggage as about 12 other people. (His mother loves to bring back large amounts of other Italian foodstuffs as well as the oil.) They got through Gatwick without a hitch despite carrying 20 litres of flammable liquid and a mobile Deli!

You have to assume that when leaving the UK you're allowed (at best):

 

"ONE item of hand baggage...The cabin bag should be no bigger than 45cm wide x 35cm long x 16cm deep/high (17.7" wide x 13.7" long x 6.2" deep/high), including wheels, handles, side pockets - equivalent to a small laptop bag or rucksack."

 

http://www.baa.co.uk

 

They have boxes for gauging luggage size - the bag has to fit to be allowed through. If there's another security alert, they can of course revert to 'no carry-on' without any notice.

Trevor, the flamable liquid your talking about what was it?

 

Olive oil does not burn. I used to use Olive oil to quench my knife blades in during heat treatment. This involved quickly plunging a piece of steel at approx. 1500 degrees F into a large tray of the oil all that resulted was a little smoke vapor and the smell of baking cookies.

I just flew out of Rome yesterday (flight to Minneapolis MN, via Chicago IL on American Airways) and it took an easy 4 hours to get through all the lines. I've not flew from Rome before, so I can't honestly compare it to anything, but I had my carry-on bag go through 3 different X-Ray machines and everybody's bags got hand searched/opened at the gate.

 

Good luck.

Mark.

 

Did not realise (about the olive oil). I have never used olive oil in the way you described!

I flew yesterday from Brussels to Washington and I had to checked in everything except a wallet, one cell phone, a newpaper, one book, and travel documents (in a plastic bag), and one laptop. No iPod, no camera allowed. I had my M7, with two lenses in their camera bag, checked in, together with a Panasonic Lumix. United was kind enough to provide some tapes with which I wrapped as much as I could the camera bag. Everything went well, got my stuff back at Dulles. However I had 6 rolls 400 ISO film checked-in as well...and I will soon discover the damages, if any, of the x-Ray machines.

 

Good luck.

<p><em>According to my taxi driver, it seems the delays being experienced at Stansted on my return were up to 45 minute delays for baggage to arrive from the planes.</em></p><p>Well that's great. The only time I flew in to Stansted, there was no security alert whatever yet the baggage took about that long to arrive. There was no explanation. It meant that I just missed the last of the half-hourly buses to my destination (Colchester); thereafter, they were to come just once per hour. I waited three quarters of an hour or so (during which time of course I could have phoned for an minicab) before hearing that the next bus was canceled ("staff shortages" or some such routine British excuse). I don't even remember what I did after that; the memory blocks out what's too horrible.</p>

<<<Olive oil does not burn.>>>

 

Before you lose your house... the reason it doesn\'t burn under that condition is that the cooling effect of a mass of oil and the exclusion of oxygen keeps the pot from burning. For funsies, drop a bit of oil on red steel - outside, away from the house. Away from the car.

Peter is right, ALL hydrocarbons burn depending on conditions. Recycled vegatable oil is used in some vehicles.

 

Steve (chemical engineer)

Last Wednesday, I flew back from Madrid to Philly. Carry on is fine with the exception of fluids and gels. The UK situation is more complex. As you know when the plot thing was uncovered on about Friday/Saturday the 11/12th of August, the BAA allowed only ziploc bags with passport/docs, money, medications (no electronics--no nothing!). Then it was relaxed about August 14th to briefcase size carry-ons except fluids and gels (electronics were OK). Then I understand it was rescinded back to the ziploc bag restrictions about this past weekend after the bomb parts were found. Short routes (inter-Europe) have the most severe security restrictions rigth now and may continue so for those flights leaving the UK.

 

FWIW, when I was in Spain, I was prepared to ship my cameras back via DHL or FEDEX even though they were insured out the gizoo! Under no circumstances would I have checked them into my luggage. They would have NEVER made to their destination. My feeling was that even though the items were insured and I would eventually be reimbursed if they were stolen or broken (which would have happened), the depreciation, hassle, time, etc. was not worth it and the shipping would have been safer and faster. Incidentally, while in Spain, one of the big issues discussed on CNN was that the airlines are minimally responsible for damage, loss, etc. for items checked in to the hold. Many people aren't aware that the airlines' responsibility is so limited. Frankly, in all my years of air travel, this is the worst I've seen.

 

Whatever you do, do not check your M cameras and/or laptops into your luggage. You will never see them again. In fact, leave your M kit home and bring something you can live without if it gets stolen if you're forced to check it into the hold. It's really a mess.

Ciao Luigi.

Io vado spesso a Londra, con la Ryanair e porto sempre le mie Leica e Voigtalnder Bessa o le mie Nikon o tutte assieme, oltre a numerose pellicole diapositive o negative, in uno zaino Tamrac Expedition 8. I controlli ai raggi X non hanno mai danneggiato le emulsioni.

Per quanto riguarda il trasporto a bordo degli aerei, sappi che dallo scorso Ferragosto le autoritࠡeroportuali hanno concesso nuovamente il permesso di portare a bordo degli aerei le borse contenenti attrezzature fotografiche. Vedi le news su www.amateurphotographer.co.uk

Ciao

 

Vincenzo Maielli

 

Hi, Luigi.

I often flying to London whit Ryanair flying company and always carring my Leicas M and VC Bessa or Nikon or both type togheter, with a Tamrac Expedition 8 backpack, with many films (diacolour and negatives). The X Ray control never have damaged my emulsions.

From 15/08/2006, the london aerportual authotities have newly allow to carry on board the bags with photographic equipment (see the news on www.amateurphotographer.co.uk).

Ciao Vincenzo, e grazie dell'info.

Hai per caso un link preciso per l'articolo che menzioni su AP?

 

Thanks everybody for your infos and the good luck wishes...I will try and find out from my

insurerers if and what my all risks policy will cover in case of loss or theft of my camera

equipment when flying-especially if not on me but stored away in the luggage hold-... I may

sadly end up like Joseph is suggesting, no M kit this time and just hope there will be A NEXT

TIME, may be I'll just take my $300 Digital Olympus Camedia and have some fun with it for

once using it besides ebay listings...what a shame...