Getting the last laugh with airport security.

An airport I try very hard to not have visit...also not a fan of the security at Miami...LOL

Sounds like she did her job well, and professionally. Did you thank her for that? After all, it's not a game, it's for your safety.

Well, Mr. E, the guy she was checking after me came out and said "I forgot about a water bottle in my bag."

The agent said "Thank you for being honest up front" and gave me a side eye smiling all the time.

We actually had more of a conversation about my travels while she was looking through everything. She seemed more shocked that I was doing it alone.

Isn't it great when they treat you normal and kind despite the job they have to do.

Great story, Frank!

When I went through Heathrow a few weeks ago, I totally forgot to remove the liquids from my bag. I was so worried about my 2 grandkids getting through that I wasn't paying much attention to my own bag. And ironically, the bag was not flagged. I'm not sure why. The liquids were in a 3-1-1 clear ziplock bag, and were tucked inside of another fabric pouch (I always just pull out the ziplock) so I was surprised it wasn't caught.

To be honest, I didn't even think about it till my grandson mentioned it after we were completely through security. He thought it was pretty funny, buy I was totally embarrassed.

Any idea what in your bag looked like a liquid?

LOL!

I came through Helsinki a couple of days ago and my backpack was flagged. I also knew I had nothing in it against the rules, but the big frustration was the 10 people with bags in front of my bag who DID have problems so it felt like I waited forever. When one agent finally got to me, visibly looking tired, she asked “Do you have plates inside?” Having bought some pottery in Japan and carrying it with me to keep it safe, l said “Yes” and she looked at it all wrapped up from the store. I offered to unwrap it but she waved me on. After watching the nonsense with the ill-prepared arriving tour group, not knowing how many had been in front of me, I felt sorry for the agents.

I felt sorry for the agents.

I always feel sorry for them. If they di their job well, the get criticized. If they don't, and they miss something and as a result, something bad happens, the same people who complained about having their bag checked will crucify them for not having checked more. A thankless job, being done to keep us safe.

Any idea what in your bag looked like a liquid?

It was either the solid deodorant or the shave stick (soap) I use. That's what we came up with.

Mardee....some security lines at Heathrow have the new equipment and it's not necessary to remove the 3-1-1 bag or electronics.

Ha! I always chat if they want to look because I know they are just doing their jobs and I have nothing that isn't ok. One time it was something we had for our 1.5 year old. I had to take a drink/bite to prove it was ok. The other time was just 2 summers ago after our RS Sicily tour. My MIL had bought a large bag of salt in Trapani, but my husband was schlepping it for our flight from Catania to Rome. They flagged it because it looked like drugs. Salt, it was salt. And we all had a good laugh!

I’m surprised that the security person helped you repack, Frank II. She was exceptionally nice, compared to my many experiences at Heathrow Terminal 5, and at several airports in North America and Europe.

Any chance the real culprit was the guy behind you who did have a water bottle in his bag. bit the screener flagged yours in error?

You did get to have a chat with the person who searched your bags, and maybe that contributed to her assistance in repacking.

Frank, that must’ve been it. As I said, I was very surprised it wasn’t flagged. Well good. Thanks for letting me know. I feel a little bit better about it. I really hate breaking the rules even inadvertently.

It was either the solid deodorant or the shave stick (soap) I use.

Yep, there are some "semi-solids" that are hard to identify, I have any number of things trigger an alert (I buy odd things). Like you said, be polite, play a bit dumb, offer nothing.

Of course, I almost always check a bag on the way home, and rarely take anything of question on the way over, so work to avoid those issues.

I was pulled aside at SFO airport security checkpoint last month; my REI duffel bag was flagged by the security screener for suspicious items. The TSA agent laughed when she unzipped my bag and found a bag full of all sorts of cookies and chocolates. Nevertheless she's required to swab every items; while doing so she kept teasing me for having sweet tooth :)
For some reason I always got pulled aside because of chocolates and goodies I packed in my carry-on bag; so packing them all in a separate bag will save a lot of hassle when additional inspection is required.