'Sir' always get stopped because he has two false knees and they set off the alarms every time! I got stopped at Manchester and had my bag checked - turned out they thought my fan was a blade of some kind ! Don't mind - would rather they checked than not!

Tarry , the machine they used for " testing " your belt was probably a swab of your belt being tested in a barringer machine which tests for traces of explosives , it's just random testing that has to be done and can be various items , I had my iPad tested for instance , it's all down to the guy who wore explosive underpants and I'm not talking about Robbie in his Rock DJ video
I can only guess that your camera and phone were checked to see that they were real and not dummies packed with something else . We went through Jersey last year and its a lovely airport and very good security there very efficient and thorough , they did the swab tests but there liquid tests were still done with litmus paper, we were having a very friendly chat with the security staff with my wife being in the same work and they were hoping to get the liquid testing machine which " sniffs " the vapour , but when using those machines you have to have resealable bags for them to work properly .

Ironic that you mentioned Jersey , we were literally talking about booking a day trip out there to have lunch in St Aubins Bay , beautiful views there from the hotel we stayed at last year , a nice way to spend a day off !!

Prawn. It can be annoying at times , and I suppose we have 2 choices , spit feathers , steam out of ears or smile sweetly and be on our way , sadly none of us are mind readers , but I always view it as a process that is a minute percentage of our holiday time , it's a bit like going to the dentist , you don't exactly look forward to it , sometimes it's a bit painful , other times its a breeze , and when it's all over you feel a little better !!

I've set the alarm off a couple of times but it never bothers me when I'm frisked. Sometimes the length of the queue to go through is more annoying than being searched. Malaga airport, the queue

At our little local airport Durham Tees Valley they take your photo as you go through. I bet they've got some beauty's

re queue jumpers and the "leaning on a barrier" method of preventing it.
last year coming home from Goa we were waiting in the line for the x-ray machine entering the airport.
Some people came down and were politely pushing through the queue to get to the front, when one English woman started to get excited in a very loud manner.
Along came a young Indian woman in uniform who informed the lady that the people were in fact arriving late for a flight which was already boarding and that she had instructed them to go to the front.
This didn't satisfy the woman who continued to rant.......until the young woman beckoned an armed soldier over who politely escorted the woman outside the airport "to cool down".
This year I was instructed to go to the visa desk at the extreme end of the line but when I got there the assistant said that he was only dealing with the flight crew and that I should go away. When I explained that his assistant had directed me he relented and stamped the passport etc and passed me through....almost to the front of the security queue, I must have "jumped over" 100 people.
Lots of looks but I am fairly thick skinned!

Obviously I don't have any trouble with it if their flight is beings called and they need to get priority, I thought that would have gone without saying.

but how would you know know if they were in a 'priority; situation ?
anyone leaning across barriers to stop "queue jumpers' would get little change from me if I needed to get to the front....... and using children ' strategically placed' to defend your territory ?????
I assume however that you are mainly meaning queuing to check in, where everyone is on the same flight, rather than queuing in general for access to the airport, but honestly, what is the issue?
once your luggage is checked the aircraft isn;t going to leave without you anyway, why get excited and annoyed by something that isn't going to affect you to any great degree.
Does it really matter if you are the first or last to check in?

More to do with the queuing in the departure gate area , I'm not bothered when I board the plane it's the seat I have reserved that matters more , but in my experience they call assistance and children , then premium passengers , then gold card holders , then silver card holders etc etc , eventually there are only 5 passengers who don't qualify for the call to board !!! I really couldn't careless though and usually sit and wait til the masses have boarded , it's amazing how many jump up and feel entitled to be first. Usually when we q for security we are recognised and told we can go to the front but never do , my wife thinks its a professional abuse and I can't put up with the stares from others , it's bad enough with the stares we get because the staff say hello and make a fuss of a fellow worker , people stare as if we are bypassing the same procedures because it all seems so friendly and chatty but we're not I feel almost relieved when we fly out from LHR , some of the behaviour I observe at airports is almost unbelievable .

I'll queue for hours no problem as long as it's a fair queue. It's the sneaking up the side slitherers which would annoy me.

The late callers have to go through, no problem there either & usually there's a member of staff going along the queue shouting their flight number out so that everyone is aware.

del949 wrote:

but how would you know know if they were in a 'priority; situation ?
anyone leaning across barriers to stop "queue jumpers' would get little change from me if I needed to get to the front....... and using children ' strategically placed' to defend your territory ?????
I assume however that you are mainly meaning queuing to check in, where everyone is on the same flight, rather than queuing in general for access to the airport, but honestly, what is the issue?
once your luggage is checked the aircraft isn;t going to leave without you anyway, why get excited and annoyed by something that isn't going to affect you to any great degree.
Does it really matter if you are the first or last to check in?

Because there are staff calling out the flight number and telling them them to come to the front at least if you are in one of the long flight queues for multiple flights which is what I am talking about. I couldn't care less if I am last to get on a flight if I am last in the queue. You sound a lovely person if you would barge infront of people's kids and knock them out of the way to get in front of people who have arrived before you just so you can get on the plane first. Last couple of times we have travelled we have gone club and booked seats so we didn't have to put up with the kind of behaviour you are advocating. You would get short shrift from me and my DH if you barged my kids (or anyone else's out of the way) if you arrived in the queue after us but tried to side slither unless u had an obvious medical issue, but surely they would call people first if they have a med seat. I loathe unfair behaviour.
Actually it can matter if you are last on due to the lack of hand luggage space, I don't particularly want mine 20 rows behind us if in economy, there are wonderful people who travel who would go through your stuff given half the chance.

It's side slitherers I hate as well Glynis those are the ones I thought it was obvious I was talking about I'm happy to queue for hours if it's a fair queue as well. I have no problem with a fair queue, it's pretty obvious who is trying to queue jump anyone with half a brain can spot them either weadling their way in or just walking to the front pretending they are looking at the boards and trying to join the front, and then those at the front having a row with them about pushing in and they having to walk right the way to the back of the queue with their tail between their legs - how we and a few others laughed when we saw that.

You sound a lovely person if you would barge infront of people's kids and knock them out of the way to get in front of people who have arrived before you just so you can get on the plane first.

I think that if you read what I posted I never mentioned getting on the plane first, I said "'if I needed to get to the front of the queue".
The operative word being "needed".

As far as harming your children and me being a bad person..........who is it who uses them as defences?

The budget airlines used to be the worst for this before you could rebook your seat if you wished. My friend and I were coming back from Majorca and there was about 3 or 4 flights queuing at the same check in desk. There were a couple of non British flights and they obviously weren't used to queuing. There wasn't a 'line' it was just one big fat mass of people. The situation was chaotic when ground staff tried to get a 'now boarding' flight passengers to the front of the 'queue'. It was mad.

Wasn't aware I was swabbed for explosives for some reason I thought it was drugs...live and learn. I guessed it was to check that they where real.....kind of strange both ways out I had the random checks, but I guess I stood out been a sole female or something and not so used to the whole flying thing (it was my first flight ever!lol)
That said when I sailed over to France, pulled over, and scanned my bag and they saw the camera, and thought it was ALARMING because it was a metal thing, showed them my my camera, and all was good...
Must say it was a bit nerving having the whole check thing...but there you go I was new at it.

Jersey was fab I met some friends over there and had a good time, I went in March and had a great time as was blessed by good weather.

Glynis HT Admin wrote:

I've set the alarm off a couple of times but it never bothers me when I'm frisked.

I end up ridiculously anxious
But I love flying and I love going away.... so have to deal with it.

Tarry wrote:

Wasn't aware I was swabbed for explosives for some reason I thought it was drugs...live and learn. I guessed it was to check that they where real.....kind of strange both ways out I had the random checks, but I guess I stood out been a sole female or something and not so used to the whole flying thing (it was my first flight ever!lol)

Jersey was fab I met some friends over there and had a good time, I went in March and had a great time as was blessed by good weather.

It's Customs that would be interested in you for that And sadly they will take an interest in you more being a sole traveller as opposed to a couple on certain routes / flights

Glad Jersey was good for you , hoping for a nice sunny day , it was a bit mixed last year for us , but still a great break .

I wasn't sure....:) Had my mug shot done anyway (I have found for internal flights at Gatwick you get mugshotted)

I do hate those travellers that lurk around the boarding gates, after all we've all been handed a boarding pass with an allocated seat

running fit wrote:

I do hate those travellers that lurk around the boarding gates, after all we've all been handed a boarding pass with an allocated seat

Yeah me too, they are as bad as the side slitherers.

...or simply choke up the gates when loading by seat rows.

Hi Tarry , for domestic flights you do have a photo taken at security as domestic and international passengers will be mixing in the departure lounge .