Flashlights & Airport Insecurity Part 3

This is the third "installment" of my experiences flying with flashlights post 9/11.

I just returned from a flight to Canada carrying many flashlights for testing. I had been especially concerned after reading posts about the use of flashlights as bombs. These are the lights I traveled with:

BELT AND POCKET CARRIED:
TACM III
INOVA X5
ARC AAA Le,
Photon II
Six SF 123's in my custom holsters for lights, mini radio and cell phone.

PACKED IN CARRY ON:
SF D3 with N2 lamp in 2.5" SRTH LPS Turbohead
Two UKE 2L's
Trek 1400
CMG Reactor (Edit)
E2 with MN02 lamp
Eight SF 123's

All lights had batteries, so in my flight to Canada I went through security and customs with a total of ten flashlights and thirty three batteries (not counting the two coin cells in the Photon).
I was neither stopped, delayed, questioned or searched.

Things were very different on the return trip.

Not only was I stopped, searched and double scanned, but my bags were emptied out and my flashlights removed. They were all "sniffed" by the hand held electronic explosives detector after which I had to demonstrate that each flashlight worked, and had to open several of them, empty out the batteries and demonstrate that the insides were empty (with the illumination from my AAA that they let me take from the metal items basket). They were familiar with lithium 123's, but I believe the bright red of the Surefires inspired extra attention.
The Photon was the only light that didn't interest them, probably because they had seen so many or because of their tiny, benign appearance.

While I was checked more thoroughly than other passengers because of my unusual cargo
(One of the searchers said she had never seen so many flashlights), most if not all passengers had their bags opened and searched.

I'm glad that the U.S. is taking wise precautions but I was a little surprised that getting into Canada seemed just as easy as pre 9/11. Of course we have suffered terrorist hits and Canada has not (to my knowledge). Still, I would have felt much safer if passengers on my outbound flight had been more stringently checked.

Brightnorm

Thanks for the info.. I think I will continue with my personal moritorium on flying.

Originally posted by brightnorm:
Still, I would have felt much safer if passengers on my outbound flight had been more stringently checked.

Brightnorm

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Well maybe, and this is 200% speculation and it's mostly just to make you feel better--just maybe your outgoing airport had better machinery than coming back, like those new X-Ray type machines that can spot explosives a mile away. Also, remember many checks can and do happen to your luggage after it's been checked in.

Originally posted by Saaby:
</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Originally posted by brightnorm:
Still, I would have felt much safer if passengers on my outbound flight had been more stringently checked.

Brightnorm

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Well maybe, and this is 200% speculation and it's mostly just to make you feel better--just maybe your outgoing airport had better machinery than coming back, like those new X-Ray type machines that can spot explosives a mile away. Also, remember many checks can and do happen to your luggage after it's been checked in.

</font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Saaby,

Good points (but I don't feel any better!). My luggage was all carry on.

Brightnorm

Thanks for the update. I think that I will just keep driving everywhere for the time being.

Remember also- most of the terrorists came into the US THROUGH Canada, so of course they are going to check people closer coming INTO the US.

One of our employees was going to Denver and had a leatherman micra and a pulse. They opened the pulse and seeing only the pliers they then gave it back then seeing the scissors on the micra they took it from him.

Originally posted by revolvergeek:
Thanks for the update. I think that I will just keep driving everywhere for the time being.

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">I've never been on a plane either. It's ok though, I love roadtrips.

So the security checks coming out of Canada were better than the checks going into Canada? Who was doing each set of checks? Were they Canadian Customs officers checking you on your flight out or US Airport security? Also, was it US Customs officers in Canada checking you as you left Canada or Canadian customs officers?

Just curious.

Mind you I really doubt there are many serious targets in Canada, perhaps they would like to take out all the Tim Hortons and deprive us of donuts?

I am more impressed that you and all the passengers were well checked going back into the United States, sounds very sensible to me.

I carried around 9 or 10 weapons(flashlights) with me on my recent flight. One of these was a professesed weapon - the baton light. Another was a z3 with 4 6p to 6r extenders attached(note: this allows aa batts to be used instead of 123s). Mind you it was disasembled during the frisking but I could have had it together in seconds and had a skull crushing weapon. None were questioned.

Swisstech utilikey - I have never tried it but as long as it was in your carryon on a keyring with 6 other keys it would go unnoticed.

Next time though I think I'll cut back some. 10 years in prison aint my cupajoe.

Originally posted by buckshot:
So the security checks coming out of Canada were better than the checks going into Canada? Who was doing each set of checks? Were they Canadian Customs officers checking you on your flight out or US Airport security? Also, was it US Customs officers in Canada checking you as you left Canada or Canadian customs officers?

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">buckshot,

I should have clarified that the delays were not in Customs, but at the scanning sites. Also, the airline was Air Canada

Brightnorm

Originally posted by Aragorn:
...Another was a z3 with 4 6p to 6r extenders attached(note: this allows aa batts to be used instead of 123s)...

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Aragon,

Good to have you back. Would you please clarify the extenders and procedure to convert a Surefire to AA operation?

Thanks,
Brightnorm

I've seen a photo of items confiscated from travellers at airports in the UK. It was a mountain of nail scissors, nailfiles, sewing needles and nailclippers too: even the tiny ones.
Judging by that, a multi-tool could be difficult to explain.

We have had a news report that a 2" long plastic GI Joe dolls rifle was confiscated from a kid flying from a US airport.

If security is like that, I'd be worried about having an expensive light confiscated.
The items I mentioned above were clearly not given back.

Jahn

Darell posted somewhere that his naughty wife tried to take on one of those keychain Swiff knives. He was allowed to leave the security checkpoint and mail the knife to his home I thnk.

That's correct. You can do whatever you want with the item - except take it through the checkpoint. Most people don't go through the trouble I did. It is not illegal to carry a knife. It is simply illegal to have a knife on a plane now.

Having just returned from flying nine times, I have lots more to tell. First off, our group lost another Swiss Army knife, but we gave it to our local tourguide to keep, so not all was lost. The problem with travelling is that it is so great to have a knife with you... and it is so easy to forget to switch it from your personal carry to your checked baggage when you fly every two or three days.

I took a 4" folder with me, and nearly lost it. I had three bags (fanny pack, Camelbak and a hand-carry duffle). Most of the time, I kept the knife in my Camelbak, and I used it daily. For one flight, our luggage had to be collected the night before we checked out of the hotel, and I totally forgot to pack the knife away safely. Next morning, there I am with the knife in my pack. All three of my bags go through the X-ray, and here comes "The Man." We'll need to re-check this one (points to my duffel). He puts it back through and scratches his head. Says we need to hand search it. I look at the two images on the screen and there is the knife, clear as day, in my Camelbak, and he's comparing that image to the new image of my re-scanned duffel. The bag he's searching for it in, is the duffel. All clear, and I'm on my way. I never made that mistake again, but it sure didn't give me much confidence either. They'd clearly seen a knife on the X-ray machine, and searched the wrong bag for it!

This all happened in China, where they have WAY more security than we do. They were picking about one in four for a full cavity search on each flight. In all but one airport, everybody had to remove their shoes for X-raying. Some people were even searched after boarding the plane.

Say Darell, you haven't told us if you enjoyed your trip yet.

So, how was it?

YC

I'm probably going to have a lot of 'xplaining to do next February then, as the plan is to bring along all of my bright and unusual flashlights to Florida for the CPF portion of the Shot show. And my electric wheelchair will probably be pretty well stripped on the spot both coming and going, since they can't throw it in the X-ray machine. There are a ton of wires running everywhere that the chair obviously didn't come with, batteries that don't belong on it, blinking lights everywhere, and they'll be suspicious about every one of them. It's a screener's nightmare, X10.

It's even possible that a rental scooter may have to be arranged at the destination, rather than trying to get my own chair or scooter through all the checkpoints. But it's too early to determine that, so for now the plan is still to bring my own chair or scooter, lights and all - though the auxillary battery may have to be left behind (it's unspillable, but it's not encased or trayed) and the lighting system powered with a D-cell pack sometime after arrival.

A suitcase stuffed full of flashlights should also throw up a red flag. Wonder how many of them they'll keep after the suitcase is behind their walls.

Can you put laser pointers in your carry-on, or do they need to go in your suitcase? I used to just pocket-carry them onto planes, but I bet you can't do that anymore.

Originally posted by The LED Museum:

A suitcase stuffed full of flashlights should also throw up a red flag. Wonder how many of them they'll keep after the suitcase is behind their walls.

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Craig,

Based on my experience, they will probably make you demonstrate your lights, or possibly remove the batteries to look inside, but there is no reason for them to confiscate them after they see that they are in fact working flashlights.

Brightnorm

For a competition we needed to carry two _large_ NiMH packs as checked luggage from Boston to Sandy Eggo.

Each battery back consisted of 6 10 cell sticks of sub-C cells, and 4 10 cell sticks of long-fat-A cells. Each stick was individually heat shrinked, with wires and a connector coming out of one end, and then the 10 total sticks were bundled together. The battery packs could not have looked more like an old fashioned bundle of dynamite sticks.

For shipping, we took the packs apart into individual sticks. The sticks were placed side by side with a bit of space on top of bubble wrap sheets, and taped into place. The sheets were then placed in a larger shipping package with more padding, and the whole package went as checked luggage with no problem.

I suspect that if you have a large number of flashlights, just pack them well for shipping, send them as checked luggage, and you will have no problems. Better yet, pack them well for shipping in a way that permits easy inspection (eg. taped to flat trays which then go into the box).

-Jon

Originally posted by brightnorm:
</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Originally posted by The LED Museum:

A suitcase stuffed full of flashlights should also throw up a red flag. Wonder how many of them they'll keep after the suitcase is behind their walls.

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Craig,

Based on my experience, they will probably make you demonstrate your lights, or possibly remove the batteries to look inside, but there is no reason for them to confiscate them after they see that they are in fact working flashlights.

Brightnorm</font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">So, depending on how many you're taking, you might want to get there really early. Better to be doing all this crap super early in the morning than later in the day with 100 people in line behind you.

Now, I haven't spent much time in an airport lately but when I was younger (and before Sept 11 I might add) it seems like we were watching people come and go all the time, so now, lets see if I can remember it right.

The PA at the Salt Lake Inernational Airport often says something like:
Attention please. Do not leave your baggage unattended. If anyone places something inside your bag without your knowledge please notify security immediatly. Thankyou.

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">No seriously!