The trouble with air travel
By M.P. RAVINDRA NATHAN
Published January 14, 2007
Since we have progressed in our ability to travel long distances frequently, one would think that travel would become easier. Globalization certainly has helped bring nations come closer, but international travel is entirely another matter.
My wife and I traveled to India via London and Dubai twice in 2006, and both trips were quite arduous. Our first trip was in January 2006. There were no "orange alerts" anywhere at that time. We had to board Virgin Atlantic Airways from Orlando. "You need to report three hours before the gate closes," the airline had informed us. So we were there very early. The line was already a half-mile long, winding along the limited space in front of the airlines counter. And it was moving ever so slowly. Our travel documents were checked over and over again.
At the baggage check-in counter, our bags were inspected and weighed as we attested that we had packed everything ourselves. I thought I was rid of the two biggest suitcases when the official at the counter said, "You now have to take this to the X-ray screening machine and load them yourself." We dragged the suitcases, hefted them on to the belt, sent them through the screening device and got them sealed and certified at the other end. Then the luggage had to be dragged back to the check-in counter for final loading. "This is a new twist," I told my wife. And no help was available, although we were willing to tip generously.
The next step, going through the security gates, would be easy, I thought. But there was another inspection of all the travel documents and identification papers before being allowed to stand in the final check-in line for the flight. That definitely was a mile long. As we reached the final X-ray screening area, we had to dump all the carry-on stuff, including coats, wallets, beepers, cell phones, shoes, neck chains and all coins on a tray for screening. An agent called me aside and wanted to examine my bag. He was fascinated with the nail cutter with no nail file, which I always carry. Deciding it was a weapon, he threw it in the garbage.
We were the last passengers to arrive at the boarding gate. But it now was time for boarding. And as we lined up they were still calling people at random for one final security check. Although my wife escaped, I was not so lucky. I was asked to come out of the line and to move to the side for one last inspection. They rifled through my carryon bag, found everything was to their satisfaction (Whew!) and finally let me in.
My wife joked, "Sorry, with the 'random person' sign written on your forehead, what else do you expect?' " Since I know that questioning a security officer may be tantamount to heresy, I did not utter a word.
At Gatwick Airport outside London we had to change the terminals, which I thought would be easy as it is in most American airports. Not so in London. We landed in the South Terminal, a long way to the North Terminal from where the Emirates flight to India was scheduled to depart. There were long walks through the South Terminal to be endured because none of the moving walkways were operating; the elevators and even the escalators were shut off. Then we had a long bus ride to finally reach the North Terminal.
During my second trip to India, I spent a week in London. The city was in the middle of a heat wave, and it was very oppressive because the apartments, buses, trains and most public places were not air conditioned. Ah, I missed the blissful blast of cool air we take for granted anywhere in USA!
While walking through central London - Baker Street, Oxford Circus, Piccadilly Circus, Regents Park - I noted that the security guards appeared to be very vigilant. The London cops, who usually carried only a baton, were carrying guns this time, some even had machine guns.
My sister-in-law and mother-in-law, who traveled on the day after investigators foiled the terrorists' Atlantic Ocean airline plot in August 2006, had to go through five hours of passenger-by-passenger security screening in the Miami airport, which delayed takeoff by three hours. Having missed their connection from London to Dubai, they were herded into an outside tent at Heathrow Airport like cattle, in freezing weather (yes, they had freezing rains in the middle of August!). Due to staff layoffs, there was nobody to push the wheelchair. Finally, they managed to get a hotel room to rest before catching another flight the following day. My 85-year-old mother-in-law, who needed daily insulin injections, had to make do with oral medicines because absolutely no needles, syringes, vials of medicines, water or her Accuchek glucometer were allowed on board. And, when she landed in India exhausted and dehydrated, her blood sugar was a whopping 550.
So this is the new reality for air travelers. I know security checks are very important in this day and age, but such aggressive checks entail a lot of needless suffering. Security specialists aided with the current technology should be able to screen passengers with less hassle. And older, sickly people showing no suspicious behavior should be treated better. Often they can identify which travelers may have "hostile intent" with simple screening techniques and common sense.
Terrorism is reaching us from every corner and disrupting our daily lives. Air travel, already very stressful, is getting much worse. It is better to be aware of all the hassles before you embark on a long trip. Once you leave the U.S., security is mostly an illusion.
Is the serenity in our lives gone forever?
I hope this new year will be better for all travelers.
M.P. Ravindra Nathan is a Brooksville cardiologist. Guest columnists write their own views on subjects they choose, which do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper.