Michael Scott Baldwin <mike@post.att.com> (05/21/91)
{I don't mean to horse a dead beat, but I do have a telecom-related
story about bringing cellular phones on planes...}
I've noticed that my Motorola PT-500 always sets off the airport
sensors, so I give it to the nice guard before I walk through.
They seem very curious, and *always* open it up. Usually they
push and poke at it, and punch some buttons. One time the guard
turned it off and handed it back! (I assume they didn't know
they did it.)
The strangest time, however, was when I gave it to the guard when it
was turned off. She *asked me* to turn it on for her! I asked why,
and she just said "turn it on please". Once it bleeped and blinked
for her, she was satisfied. I guess she was convinced that it wasn't
one of those "fake" phones that you can stash 50 tons of cocaine in or
something. I'm waiting for the day they yank the battery off...
This was in Newark, Dallas, and Miami, by the way. I always carry it
on the plane; I never check it in with luggage. I turn the phone off
before I board the plane.
michael.scott.baldwin@att.com (Bell Laboratories)
[Moderator's Note: The added airport security as a result of Kuwait/Iraq
is supposed to be ending after this month according to some recent
news in the {Chicago Tribune}. PAT]Brent Chapman <brent@america.telebit.com> (05/22/91)
mike@post.att.com (Michael Scott Baldwin) writes: > The strangest time, however, was when I gave it to the guard when it > was turned off. She *asked me* to turn it on for her! I asked why, > and she just said "turn it on please". Once it bleeped and blinked > for her, she was satisfied. This has been routine at many airports for the last several years. I am always asked to make my beeper go "beep", and make my computer (if I'm carrying one) show a startup screen. This has happened to me at Oakland, San Francisco, San Jose, Phoenix, Palm Springs, Las Vegas, and several other airports over the last four years or so. Brent Chapman Telebit Corporation Sun Network Specialist 1315 Chesapeake Terrace brent@telebit.com Sunnyvale, CA 94089 Phone: 408/745-3264
Richard Bowles <bowles@stsci.edu> (05/22/91)
mike@post.att.com (Michael Scott Baldwin) writes: > The strangest time, however, was when I gave it to the guard when it > was turned off. She *asked me* to turn it on for her! I asked why, > and she just said "turn it on please". Once it bleeped and blinked > for her, she was satisfied. I guess she was convinced that it wasn't > one of those "fake" phones that you can stash 50 tons of cocaine in or > something. I'm waiting for the day they yank the battery off... I don't think it was cocaine they were worried about. Imagine what would happen if your phone was filled with some nice unstable high explosive and you turned it on? I think the "please turn it on" policy is several years old -- I remember waiting while someone ahead of me at the metal detector was frantically trying to find a battery pack for his laptop.
"David E. Bernholdt" <bernhold@red8> (05/23/91)
In article <telecom11.387.9@eecs.nwu.edu> bowles@stsci.edu (Richard Bowles) writes: > mike@post.att.com (Michael Scott Baldwin) writes: >> She *asked me* to turn it on for her! I asked why, >> and she just said "turn it on please". Once it bleeped and blinked >> for her, she was satisfied. > I think the "please turn it on" policy is several years old Indeed, this _has_ been going on for several years. And I believe that, at least at one time, they _did_ remove the batteries of anything you tried to carry on prior to international flights -- seems to me that was instigated by the bomb on the PanAm flight over Scotland. Side note: A friend of mine recently traveled with a SCSI disk drive for her Mac in her carry-on. She had a hard time convincing the security folks that it really was _on_ and _working_ after they finally found an AC outlet to plug it into. For my money, I'd rather the security people were cautious. Sure its an inconvenience, but if someone manages to get a bomb aboard, lots of people are going to be inconvenienced. And now back to telecom... David Bernholdt bernhold@qtp.ufl.edu Quantum Theory Project bernhold@ufpine.bitnet University of Florida Gainesville, FL 32611 904/392 6365
carroll@cs.washington.edu> (05/24/91)
In article <telecom11.384.11@eecs.nwu.edu> mike@post.att.com (Michael Scott Baldwin) writes: > The strangest time, however, was when I gave it to the guard when it > was turned off. She *asked me* to turn it on for her! I asked why, > and she just said "turn it on please". Once it bleeped and blinked > for her, she was satisfied. I guess she was convinced that it wasn't > one of those "fake" phones that you can stash 50 tons of cocaine in or > something. I'm waiting for the day they yank the battery off... The concern is about explosives rather than drugs. Apparently they tell these people that if the radio/calculator/cell phone/ vibrator works as the manufacturer intended, then it can't be a bomb. They usually take apart cameras, too (though they don't ask you to turn them on, usually). This thread remindst me of the time I flew from Seattle to Oklahoma City carrying an engineering model of a power supply from the AWACS on-board central data processor. This beast was about thirty pounds of heat sink, with a few power transistors in TO-3 cans mounted on the surface, and wires hanging out everywhere. In short, it looked more like a bomb than a bomb would. I carried it onboard with me both ways, and passed through four airport security installations, of which only one (the last one) even asked me what it was. Needless to say, I was relieved to be asked. Oh, for the good old days... Jeff Carroll carroll@ssc-vax.boeing.com [Moderator's Note: The word going around is that with Iraq behind us, the stringent airport security of the past several months will be relaxed somewhat starting in June. PAT]
ghg@en.ecn.purdue.edu> (05/27/91)
In article <telecom11.395.7@eecs.nwu.edu> bernhold@red8 (David E. Bernholdt) writes: > In article <telecom11.387.9@eecs.nwu.edu> bowles@stsci.edu (Richard > Bowles) writes: >> mike@post.att.com (Michael Scott Baldwin) writes: >>> She *asked me* to turn it on for her! I asked why, >>> and she just said "turn it on please". Once it bleeped and blinked >>> for her, she was satisfied. I have never had any hassles carrying on a portable Motorola 8000 cell phone. I was usually using it at the gate prior to boarding, and when boarding starting, I always powered it off. A couple of times the attendent started to approach me, and I said I know about the FAA rule and would keep the phone powered off ... no problems. I also have a portable terminal I built in an aluminum "zero" equipment case. It has a Zenith Z-181 laptop, a Telebit 'Blazer+ modem and nineteen Radio Shaft "D" size high capacity Nicad cells. It also has power regulators, and all the associated wiring. It connects to my cell phone and can be used to "dial up" in MNP mode. This thing looks like one hell of a bomb on the X-ray. I usually tell the X-ray operator to "expect an eyefull" before he runs it ... and have gotten many odd looks. One of them didn't even want to open it, but asked me for the battery count! Only once or twice did anyone want it turned on (that seemed to start at Lockerbee time). Once, I was in line at the X-ray at Ft Lauderdale, and got a call about a dead system at Purdue (using Follow-me roaming, during its second week of operation). I set up the terminal on the floor about six feet from the X-ray, dialed up, rebooted the system, etc. When I was done, there was quite a crowd of guards, etc, looking on, and they were "amazed" that I had fixed some other system at Purdue. ghg
Alex Beylin <alexb@cfctech.cfc.com> (05/29/91)
In article <telecom11.384.11@eecs.nwu.edu> is written: > The strangest time, however, was when I gave it to the guard when it > was turned off. She *asked me* to turn it on for her! I asked why, > and she just said "turn it on please". Once it bleeped and blinked > for her, she was satisfied. I guess she was convinced that it wasn't > one of those "fake" phones that you can stash 50 tons of cocaine in or > something. I'm waiting for the day they yank the battery off... They usually do the same when I try to carry a portable computer on board. One of the security people always takes me to the side table and asks to see the computer work. Once the lights come on, they let me go. I've always wondered what they do with laptops that require AC power to operate. Is there a three-prong AC plug at the security station? Alex Beylin alexb@cfctech.cfc.com
Floyd Davidson <floyd@ims.alaska.edu> (05/31/91)
In article <telecom11.411.11@eecs.nwu.edu> Alex Beylin <alexb@cfctech. cfc.com> writes: > They usually do the same when I try to carry a portable computer on > board. One of the security people always takes me to the side table > and asks to see the computer work. Once the lights come on, they let > me go. > I've always wondered what they do with laptops that require AC power > to operate. Is there a three-prong AC plug at the security station? As late as maybe 1985 they just wanted to look at it (a Kaypro-4), and obviously didn't know what it was. About '86-'87 or so there was a distinct change. They knew exactly what they wanted to see: some indication that it functioned (disk noise, lights, anything). Yes they always seem to know exactly where an outlet is and they don't hesitate. Floyd L. Davidson | Alascom, Inc. pays me, |UA Fairbanks Institute of Marine floyd@ims.alaska.edu| but not for opinions. |Science suffers me as a guest.
Michael Nolan <nolan@helios.unl.edu> (05/31/91)
alexb@cfctech.cfc.com (Alex Beylin) writes: > I've always wondered what they do with laptops that require AC power > to operate. Is there a three-prong AC plug at the security station? I've had to set my system up on the floor 10 or 15 feet away from the security station more than once in order to find a reachable plug. The really 'fun' experience I had was when I was carrying a Toshiba T1200 back from Dallas and had inadvertently drained the battery. Good thing I had the AC power pack in my carry-on bag! (This was last September, when security was REAL tight.) Michael Nolan nolan@helios.unl.edu
Colin Plumb <colin@array.uucp> (05/31/91)
Anything with batteries in it could be a bomb. A portable computer is several pounds of unopenable case which X-rays will show as batteries, wires, and unidentifiable junk. This is a really good cover for an explosive device. Verifying that the thing does something is a good way to screen out the less technologically sophisticated. (Not that I expect anyone here to have any difficulty finding some inessential space in a portable computer if they wented to create a "working" bomb.) Colin
king@uunet.uu.net> (06/04/91)
In article <telecom11.415.6@eecs.nwu.edu> colin@array.uucp (Colin Plumb) writes: > (Not that I expect anyone here to have any difficulty finding some > inessential space in a portable computer if they wented to create a > "working" bomb.) My feelings exactly. I've had to travel with a reasonably large (about 50 pounds with case) HP analyzer at times. When I bring it as a carry-on item airport security invariably wants me to unpack it and turn it on. I know that there's LOTS of room in there to fit exposives and a timer and still have the thing perform as advertised. Oddly, on a trip to Israel (you know, terrorism central?) last month I brought the analyzer as checked baggage. On the Chicago -> Zurich leg they took it no questions asked. (And I specifically told them, "This is computer equipment. PLEASE DON'T X-RAY IT!" Dunno if they did or not, but it still worked when I got there so I don't really care. :-) For the Zurich -> Tel Aviv leg all luggage had to be re-checked, and on that one they had me unpack the analyzer so they could run some sort of explosives sniffer over it. No one ever asked me to actually turn it on, though. (Good thing. I later found out I was missing the fuse needed for 220V AC.) Steven King, Motorola Cellular (...uunet!motcid!king)
max@uunet.uu.net> (06/04/91)
In article <telecom11.411.11@eecs.nwu.edu> alexb@cfctech.cfc.com (Alex Beylin) writes: > I've always wondered what they do with laptops that require AC power > to operate. Is there a three-prong AC plug at the security station? Yes there is. I've got a Toshiba 5200 that I've been asked to turn on more than once. Three-prong plugs are always nearby. For fun, I changed my os-prompt to: "Yes, this really is a computer and thanks for checking" Which amuses most airport security guards. | max@gupta.com | Max J. Rochlin | decwrl!madmax!max |
"Patton M. Turner" <pturner@eng.auburn.edu> (06/05/91)
> on that one they had me unpack the analyzer so they could run some > sort of explosives sniffer over it. No one ever asked me to actually > turn it on, though. The sniffer usually checks for nitrates, which are used in virtually all explosives as oxidizers. As Steven King pointed out this is a much better way to check suspicious bagagge than asking you to "Turn it on." No suprise Israel is using the latest equipment. There was a move to install them at US airports, but it died (no irony/pun intended). At one time Israel placed all baggage in a decompression chamber before loading it on planes. I guess they still do. No wonder they don't have any sucessful bombing/skyjacking since the days of Entebe. Patton Turner KB4GRZ pturner@eng.auburn.edu
gavron@uunet.uu.net> (06/06/91)
In article <telecom11.424.6@eecs.nwu.edu>, pturner@eng.auburn.edu (Patton M. Turner) writes... > At one time Israel placed all baggage in a decompression chamber > before loading it on planes. I guess they still do. No wonder they > don't have any sucessful bombing/skyjacking since the days of Entebe. Not that this is topical to telecom any longer, but the Entebbe hijacking was of an Air-France flight which was boarded at Athens. Not since the early 60s has an Israeli plane been skyjacked. None has ever been blown up -- even in all five wars. Ehud Gavron (EG76) gavron@vesta.sunquest.com