Airport’s novel anti-terror move
Thursday 14th May 2009, 2:59PM BST.
Mrs Burgess was told that the picture of the gun might upset other passengers (00690051)
No liquids, no gels, no sharp items and no books with images of guns on board this flight . . .
That is exactly what bank worker Carolyn Burgess (58), of St Brelade, was told as she was stopped by security for trying to take her paperback on board a plane from Heathrow to Japan.
As Mrs Burgess placed her Robert B Parker novel, A Triple Shot of Spenser, onto the security tray she had it snatched away from her because it ‘might upset passengers’ on the plane. It had the image of a handgun on the front.
‘I must have looked stunned, as I am past my half-century and not perhaps the most obvious terrorist,’ said the Royal Bank of Scotland clerical worker. ‘I honestly thought they were joking. It seemed so silly. I was half way through merrily reading my book.’
Mrs Burgess, who was travelling alone to visit her son in Japan, had passed through security at Jersey airport with the crime fiction novel without any problems.
A spokesman for BAA said: ‘In certain circumstances, a passenger carrying an item which features an image or slogan that could be perceived as aggressive may be asked to cover it up or remove it. Security officers are advised to use common sense when making these requests.’
Read the full story in the Jersey Evening Post. Click here for subscription details. Individual editions are also available online.
2012 CYCLE SLAM
Dallaglio Flintoff 2012 Cycle Slam
Read Graeme Le Saux's daily blogs
Greece-London Marathon on a Bike
The Dallaglio Flintoff 2012 Cycle Slam
Travel
To, from and around the Island
Airport Arrivals/Departures
Harbours Arrivals/Departures
Bus Information/Timetables
This is Jersey
Jersey Evening Post
Useful links
I’m speechless. Dear me, who would be so petty and pathetic. It’s a book. Some things just make you want to give up.
Report abuse
Too right – she could have cut out the shape of the gun with her plastic dinner knife and made spit bullets with the pages and overtaken the plane.
I’t always the ones you don’t expect!
Report abuse
Security Officers? Common Sense?
Never the twain shall meet!
Report abuse
“Security officers are ADVISED to use common sense when making these requests.”
Maybe from now on their bosses could INSTRUCT them to use common sense?
Report abuse
No doubt this will now be developed by a consultant into a training course at our airport?
Report abuse
A similar thing happened to me at Heathrow last year. Whilst going through security at Terminal 5 (just after it opened) I had a tail comb confiscated because it was considered to be an offensive weapon.
Joke is the identical comb was for sale in the Boots shop beyond security just before boarding the flight.
Never did work out the reasoning behind it but there you go.
Report abuse
I think you’ll find “common” sense is not so common at all!!!
“it ‘might upset passengers’ on the plane”. Did anyone even ask if any passengers were upset or did anyone actually complain?? Was there a poll on the most offensive items world travellers see in an airport??
I doubt it very much.
I guess that now means you won’t be allowed to take a newspaper through security anymore either because the headlines are normally VERY offensive to the public…..especially where the government is concerned!
This world is crazy!!!
Report abuse
Beware the scourge of the “Jobsworth”,inadequate little oiks usually,we have loads here,”you can’t do that” is their warcry….but the one that tickles me is confiscating tweezers at the airport,can you picture an outraged and politically minded woman who had concealed her’s barging her way onto the flight deck,taking the Captain’s nasal hair firmly in the instrument and saying “Right,fly me to…? or I pluck.
Report abuse
“Security officers are advised to use common sense when making these requests.” I think some security officers don’t know what that is in my experience
Report abuse
Is that a pistol in your pocket or a picture a pistol.
Do you have an aggressive slogan on you mind you might write down.
Please let us know if you have any history of drawing or graphic design.
What next icy comments about the wings.
You fit the profile of an artist please step aside.
Power does not only corrupt it makes some crazy to use it.
Report abuse
This is a symptom of something more sinister. In the name of terrorism a number our hard fought freedoms are being eroded and this is a rather classic but silly example of this.
Furthermore as it is now 2 years since the liquid incident is it not time some of these restrictions were relaxed especially as the perpertrators have now been tried and convicted and no terrorist worth his or her salt is likely to turn up to an airport with gels,liquids or explosives in their shoes.
Report abuse
Whats scaring me is the mental ability of people looking after our Security.
Report abuse
Surely there is some more important and interesting news to make the front page of the JEP. This is an absolute joke that this gets reported. It is of course superficial we do not exactly what the lady was told by security staff as we only have her story. Ridiculous!
Report abuse
Mrs. Burgess is a woman of impeccable character so I am happy to take her at her word, I’ve sent her son who’s an old friend of mine the headline of the JEP, no doubt it will give him a giggle in Japan. N.
Report abuse
It is far too easy for people to blame security staff for making poor judgement calls. I believe that security staff are well within their rights to make such judgements calls as their integrity & professionalism depends on it. Should someone make an incorrect call and it leads to a breach of security then everyone will say, ‘Sack them as they are wreckless, irresponsible and incompentent’.
I work in the aviation industry and am subject to these security measures each time I go to work and yes I do welcome a tight security regime and it’s not all about protecting crew and passnegers from terrorism threats. I don’t mind not being able to take the drinks that I want to drink to work and if a member of security feels that something may ‘go against the grain’ then it should be confiscated as we can NOT any risks in this day and age as was proved several years ago.
The next change will be the abolishment of glass bottles for alcholic and perfume duty free goods.
Good night.
Report abuse
15 Jersey
Get off your high horse!
No-one is disputing the need for tight security in an airport. Try reading the comments first.
What I and most other people are rather annoyed about is a book being confiscated because it had a harmless picture of a gun on the cover – this was deemed offensive to others. But it’s not actually just this episode but the double standards that these “authorities” seem to have. The Koran, bible and other religious writings are offensive to me and countless others, but will you see these confiscated for the same reason…….extremely doubtful!
Now it’s a book, but where does it all end!
Report abuse
This is part of an orchestrated plan to take away all our freedoms, one by one, as far as I am concerned. Another incident I was told about in America will make you laugh even more. One person boarded a plane wearing a badge (I am pretty sure it was a badge) and was taken off the plane for wearing this badge and got in trouble for it!!
Do you know why this badge upset the authorities so much? All because it had the words “SUSPECTED TERRORIST” on it.
Apparently no one was bothered by this badge on the plane, as the person had asked others if they minded, none did, some even saw the sense of humour in it, but this still resulted in the person being taken off the plane and interrogated by the authorities.
This is the way things are going. No way would any of these laws have seen the light of day prior to 2001. Yet now very few bat an eye lid when new rafts of laws are implimented in the name of the War on Terror.
As per these security checks do you think they are guarenteed to prevent an incident? I don’t think so. No matter what security is introduced I am sure there is always a way around it and someone will figure it out at some point.
Report abuse
I’m flying next week. I’m going to see how far I get wearing a Guns and Roses T-shirt.
Report abuse
Adrian at 17. – “This is part of an orchestrated plan to take away our freedoms!” Or, it could be a single over-enthusiastic searcher at the airport…
Report abuse
As a frequent air traveller I am constantly amazed by the disparities shown by security staff at different airports. Most security staff are employed on a wage which generally equates to their IQ.
Here are some of my recent examples.
Jersey airport : Apparently I am only allowed to take one see through plastic bag containing just one liquid item as hand luggage. This includes medication. When I questioned this rule I was told that on this occasion I would be allowed though (why, thank you kind sir).
Guernsey: I know that we must give our braying neighbours some mental leeway but I apparently cannot carry liquid face wash in my hand luggage (it was under 100ml by the way). What was I going to do – scrub the pilot to death? … fly me to New York infidel dog or I will lather and moisturise your Christian face.
Manchester – I am only allowed to take one Easter egg though security. Presumably I pose a risk of flight bound obesity.
Southampton – An old boy, in his eighties, in front of me, refused through until his binned his 50ml bottle of Optrex eye drops. He had to buy the same bottle at inflated prices air side.
Whilst we all appreciate the need for tighter security in this troubled times, allowing these goons free reign to decipher the rules as they see fit only adds to the frustrations experienced by travellers.
Also don’t forget that the authorities are trying to push through new scanning systems which actually show the person naked. Do you want your wife/children viewed by people who would have trouble chewing gum and walking in a straight line at the same time?
The so called liquid terrorists which have brought about such strict travelling conditions were convicted of conspiracy to murder – not travelling with explosives, planting them on planes, just conspiring. It is questionable as to whether they would have been capable in practice of destroying an aircraft.
Do the research, its an exact science to mix the various chemicals.
The only people to benefit are the airport shops, who now resell the same confiscated product airside and the legions of security staff now employed to harass the travelling public.
Report abuse
I sometimes find it amazing how extreme some airline companies will go to make sure you read their in-flight magazine when onboard!
But I suppose it is understandable, we are in a recession and these companies need as much income as possible (!) so if they remove all reading matter except for the “magazine” that is nothing short of a book of adverts it surely must benefit them!
Report abuse
No 20 Spring Heeled Jack – on a recent flight with friends one of them forgot to put all his liquids in a plastic bag (God knows how, he flies often enough). On going through security the liquids were noticed and were about to be confiscated until we pointed out they were all under 100ml. Then they were going to be confiscated as they weren’t in a plastic bag. I opened my plastic bag and put all my liquids into my hand-luggage (right in front of the ‘security’) and handed the bag to my mate. He placed his liquids in the bag. All is good in the security guards world and he was allowed keep his items.
If they had brains they’d be dangerous.
Report abuse
20 SHJ
It’s a farce…..whilst travelling to Manchester for one night I dared to carry 150ml tub of hair gel in see through plastic bag. Even when i opened it to show the security guard that there was barely enough for one days use left in the tub it wasn’t enough to prevent him from binning the product. He even suggested that I sccop out the remaining gel and put it in another container!!!
Ridiculous.
Report abuse
Hoplophobia, n. Irrational, morbid fear of guns (c. 1980, coined by Col. Jeff Cooper, from the Greek hoplites, weapon; see his book Principles of Personal Defense). May cause sweating, faintness, discomfort, rapid pulse, nausea, sleeplessness, nondescript fears, etc., at mere thought of guns. Presence of working firearms may cause panic attack. Hoplophobe, hoplophobic.
Most commonly found in persons holding positions of power, or influence, and the root cause of the gradual erosion of the citizen’s right to self-defence and to keep/bear arms – British rights since the Bill of Rights 1689.
A key sympton is a complete absence of logic; i.e. the belief that an inanimate object is dangerous, or even murderous. Rather like blaming pens/pencils for spelling mistakes, or assuming that ALL persons with male genitalia are rapists as they are in possession of the required equipment.
Very common among the politically correct brigade who do not believe in individual responsibility for one’s actions and prefer to absolve offenders by placing blame on objects – and removing said objects from the general public who can not be trusted to handle them responsibly.
Generally much easire than solving the root causes of crime; poverty, lack of education, alcohol or drug abuse/addiction, depression, mental illness, etc.
Report abuse
Freeeeeeeeeeeeeeedom!
Report abuse
Well said Steve C.
Also, being upset is a totally subjective thing, it should never be up to one security officer to state what might upset others, only if the item itself is potentially dangerous.
Many supermarkets keep women’s sanitary products right next to baby items. I bet that has upset plenty of women who can’t have children. Non-Muslim politicians make decisions based on their idea of not upsetting Muslims, and disregard the opinions of actual Muslims who say it doesn’t upset them. That’s upsetting. People often claim to have had a ‘bad night’s sleep’ or say they are ‘depressed’ instead of just a ‘bit fed up’, I bet that upsets people who battle real insomnia or genuine depression.
Everyday life has heaps of similar, possibly upsetting for some, scenarios. But we are adults so we deal with it.
If the item is potentially dangerous, ban it. Otherwise, let us decide what offends us.
Report abuse