Re: [Leica] Airport security

["Joe Stephenson" <joeleica@email.msn.com>]

Mike, thanks for the story. But I must say, it scares me. If these folks who
are chaged wth keeping dangerous devices off airplanes (among other things)
are as ignorant as your--and other stories suggest--they are hardly
competent to do their jobs. They do not appear to have the knowledge
(training) or experience to outwit international terrorists who may be
supported by governments or organizations with substantial resources. Maybe
the train is a good idea . . .
in doubt,
Joe Stephenson
- -----Original Message-----
From: MSwiek@aol.com <MSwiek@aol.com>
To: leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us <leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us>
Date: Thursday, September 10, 1998 6:39 AM
Subject: Re: [Leica] Airport security

>Hey group,
>
>Another experience at the airport x-ray machine in Washingtn, DC.  The
>security officer insisted that I "turn on" my Leica M-4.  She did not
accept
>my explanation that I couldn't turn it on since it did not have any
batteries
>and that ther was nothing to turn on.  She insited that all cameras had
>batteries "for the flash, film winding and zoom."  I told her it was an old
>camera, before they required batteries, and took the lens off, opened the
back
>and fired the shutter a few times.  This prompted a call to the supervisor,
>who examined the camera, and then swabbed it down with a cotton pad, which
was
>inserted into a spectrometer of some sort to determine if there were any
>explosive residues.
>
>Experience in Japan was quite different.  There, the security officer
>immediately recognized the Leica as a camera, nad we had a brief, cordial
>conversation on the merits of the various M models.
>
>
>Mike Swiek