Image by Danpaluska, no rights reserved

These days the process of going through airport security raises the blood pressure considerably.  It is unpleasant and often humiliating.

The picture that comes to mind includes long queues, unpacking all your goods onto a conveyor belt, scrabbling in your pocket for the last metallic object capable of setting off the beeps on the machine, and taking off your belt.  One’s personal dignity may be affronted by humiliating body searches.

Even worse yet, if you merely have the “wrong appearance”, you may be singled out for special attention by the security personnel.

Being a little prepared can make all the difference between being inconvenienced or enraged.  Here’s how to make your passage through airport security more bearable.

Documents

Keep your passport and boarding pass on your person, preferably in a pocket.  It’s not a good idea to leave it in your bag that is being scanned, as thefts at security points are common.  Besides which, the protocol is that you should present these to the security officers as you enter the scanner.

Valuables

Keep a sharp eye on your valuables.  Lock money in your carry-on bag to be scanned.  (This means, of course, that you should prepare by having a lockable carry-on bag.)  If the authorities wish to inspect it more closely they will simply ask that you unlock it.  Do not insert your possessions into the machine until it is your turn to pass through the scanner – you want to be in the prime position to grab it as it comes out the other side.

Mobile phones and laptops

Know in which pocket of your bag your cellphone is, as it is often required that you take it out and send it through the scanner separately.  As a rule, laptops have to be taken out of their bags and put in a separate tray.  Not having to search for things will reduce your stress levels and keep you from being distracted.

Carry one bag

This may seem obvious, but how often does one see frazzled travellers with an entire hodge-podge of bags and other paraphernalia scattered over the security conveyer.  One bag means fewer possessions that you have to keep track of.

Secure your jewellery

For total peace of mind, we would suggest not wearing jewellery until after reaching your destination.  The simple reason being that all but the smallest of jewellery will set off the scanners, which may qualify you for a body search.  If you are going to wear it, take it off prior to getting in the queue and carry it in your closed hand.  The scanner will not pick it up as a false alarm, and since you are holding it, it will be harder to steal.

Shoes

Wear shoes that are easy to remove.  If you are travelling by air to the US and are not a citizen, you will definitely be required to take your shoes off.  This will be less stressful if you can slip them off or untie them easily.  In other countries you will only be required to take your shoes off if they set off the alarm.  If you wear sneakers then those countries that rely on metal detection will likely let you keep them on.

Clothes

A body search is compulsory in certain countries’ security and although uncomfortable, you can reduce your stress if you are wearing comfortable clothes.  Wearing bulky garments will likely result in a demand to remove some of them.  The more you are asked to do during a security check, the higher your stress level will be, and the more likely you are to be the recipient of special attention.  Special attention at security is not a good thing!

Wear trousers that have a draw-string top rather than a belt with a metal buckle.  Again, unless you are hand-picked for a body search, you will often not need to take your belt off.  As previously mentioned, fewer things to remove means fewer things to track, and if you do not need to take clothes off you are going to feel more comfortable.

Check customs regulations

We would strongly suggest that you check the customs regulations of the country you are visiting and in fact the regulations of your own country for re-entry.  Many food items are prohibited to be taken into Australia for example.  And trying to do so could result in a hefty fine.  Furthermore, if they find undeclared foodstuffs they are more likely to assume that you are carrying other illegal substances and you may be subjected to an even more rigorous search.

In many countries, it is illegal to bring in agricultural products such as cheese, animal products (meat and leather, etc.) and wood products in, due to the bugs that could be infesting them and the danger this poses for introducing foreign pests to the country.

When arriving in South Africa you may not bring in cashew nuts unless they have been through stringent treatment.  The problem for the unwary is that in neighbouring Mozambique they sell huge bags of cheap cashews to tourists going to South Africa.  These are confiscated at customs and destroyed.  So if you buy them, you are throwing your money away, unless you can eat really quickly.  (If you must know, we ate fast.)

There are restrictions on how much alcohol and tobacco can be carried.  Certain medications that are available over-the-counter in you home country may, somewhat to your shock, be illegal substances elsewhere.  In the USA codeine is not permitted in medications, despite it being common in Europe and elsewhere.  Codeine is banned completely in the United Arab Emirates.  It is best to find out ahead of time if your prescribed medication is permitted.  Even if it is, take a copy of the script with you, or an official letter from your doctor.

Remain calm

We ourselves can do a lot to develop and retain a sense of tranquillity:

• Arrive early at the airport.
• Keep a positive frame of mind – we forget the problems of security once we are back home and remember the good times.
• Check-in early, preferably online before you leave home (Our online check-in link page is here: Online check-in links)
• Go through security as soon as possible, well ahead of boarding time.
• Make normal eye contact with officials, but do not glare.
• Co-operate with the officials.  Maybe they ought not to enjoy their jobs so much, but they can give you a lot of extra trouble if you give them a hard time – they have a huge degree of leeway and discretion as to how awkward they can potentially make life for you.
• Be polite and friendly.
• Do not wear tee-shirts with rude slogans about the security officials.  Red rag / bull / go figure.

Security at airports has become intrusive and inconvenient so one would assume that it is one of the safest places to be.  This is not the case.  Statistics suggest that you are more likely to have your belongings stolen at the airport than during the rest of your journey!

Internationally the worst airports for theft are regarded as Heathrow, in London, and the Johannesburg airport (OR Tambo) in South Africa.  In 2007 an analysis of TSA statistics showed that the airports in the USA where you are most likely to have your stuff stolen are Liberty in Newark, New Jersey; Miami, Fort Lauderdale; LAX, Los Angeles, and Seattle-Tacoma (Sea-Tac).

Image credits: Politikaner, 4 April 2009

The New York Post carried an article in July 2011 that was headed “TSA stands for ‘Thieves Steal at Airports’” because of collusion between TSA checkers and baggage handlers.

Some of the thieves are your fellow travellers.  They buy really cheap tickets to a random destination just to get them past the check-in, go through security many hours ahead of the scheduled departure, and then systematically move belongings from your possession to theirs.  They often dress smartly, so that they do not attract attention.

Security check-points

You’ve taken off your shoes, put your camera, cellphone, keys and wallet in the small plastic tray provided for the purpose of going through the metal detector without the beep going off.  You get to the other side of the metal detector, try and keep track of all your things and settle down at the boarding gate.  You only notice the loss later on board.  Your wallet or mobile phone or camera, etc. is not amongst your current collection of belongings.  This is not just anecdotal or urban legend.

Favourite things to steal, in decreasing order: “fine jewellery”, digital cameras, laptops, DVD players.  They also gladly steal prescription drugs, credit cards and cash.  And guns from checked-in luggage.

Our advice here is simply do not let your guard down when going through security check-points.  Wait for the person in front of you to pass through the scanner before you push your belongings through the scanner.  Check that all the belongings come out the other end.  If you are selected for secondary screening, insist that your luggage accompanies you.

Do not rely on the fact that there are cameras covering the areas.  One traveller told us that in early December 2011 he lost R20,000 going through Johannesburg airport.  The authorities refused to make a case unless he returned to Johannesburg to lay the formal complaint!  He returned to Johannesburg at his own expense.  When they examined the tapes the images were so useless that it was impossible to identify the perpetrator.

One of my team locks all his small knick-knacks in his carry-on bag.  Then just the keys and a few low-value items have to go through the scanner, which is easier to keep track of.  (He also wears jeans with a draw-string top, so that he does not have to take off his belt – it is a considerable distraction having to hold up your pants, track your goods, keep a lookout and get dressed again.)  If the security want to hand-search the bag then he can simply unlock it for them.  (He has yet to be requested to do so.)

This applies equally well to your checked-in luggage.

Laptops

These are especially targeted at airports and coffee-shops alike.  We mention both as most of us enjoy a good cuppa while transiting or watching the world go by.  Our suggestion is to keep it on the table with you, not under your chair or on an opposite chair as it can be nicked while you are possibly being distracted.

When going through security, keep a close eye on your laptop and what has worked well for us is to have a brightly coloured laptop skin on top which differentiates it.  Possibly your company logo, if you don’t just want colours for the sake of security only.

Travel light

The fewer belongings you travel with, the lower your risk.  Avoid carrying unnecessary expensive jewellery and electronics with you, if possible.  In a number of areas such things will also make you are target for mugging.

Passengers are not above taking at look (or more than a look) through other people’s stuff in the overhead lockers when everyone is asleep.  And checking-in valuables is not particular safe, so the best protection is to not have the items with you.

Travel smart at your destination

If your camera is a must, as it is for many travelling today, you can buy a bag that is specifically designed to be hard to get into by pick-pockets.  Or stick it into a tog bag or a sling bag.

Your checked-in luggage should incorporate anti-theft features.  Use TSA-approved locks, after all, they really know which ones are hard to get past!  There are many good retailers out there, including some good options at Magellans.

We bought the tickets prior to leaving home, through a tour operator in our home-country who in turn obtained the ticket from one of their agents in Beijing.  A full itinerary was emailed through to us and we were advised that we would get the actual tickets once in China.

Image attribution: ?? Kim S, 2 May 2005

The tickets arrived at our Beijing hotel before we did.  (We checked in very late owing to 45 minutes spent taxiing around the airport before deplaning, and a delayed transfer to the hotel.  Our tickets were waiting for us.)

On our arrival at 2am the hotel was in darkness and the security men were all but asleep.  Not to mention the thick smog enveloping the city which added a certain spookiness to the city streets in the early hours of the morning.

Getting to the station

Our rail journey really began around 8am with the taxi ride from the hotel to Beijing West Train Station.  The driver’s car had a unfortunate tendency to conk out in the middle of heavy traffic every few kilometres, resulting in raised fists and voices from other motorists and a great deal of apprehension on our part.  Our driver took it all in his stride, as though it were commonplace, which in his case it probably was.  Once we got to the station, which is designed to look like a gate, we realised that even finding the entrance was going to be a mammoth task by ourselves.  We therefore offered him extra cash to show us the entrance.  As he had parked in the underground parking, which looked like a modern version of the Hampton Court maze, this was a good idea.

Our driver parted company with us at the entrance with a toothy smile and a wave.  A long line snaked its way to the entrance gate, where an official was checking everyone’s train tickets.  If you didn’t have a train ticket, you could not get into the building, simple as that.

The station

Being Westerners, our documents were simply glanced at and handed back.  None of the questioning we’d seen fellow queue members go through.  We were in the station at last – an hour after setting out from the hotel!  To the left and right were shops selling all kinds of food that one might require on the journey.  Above was a confusing display board, advising departure times in Chinese.  We did not know where to go, as the train terminal is as big as an airport terminal inside, with limited signage in English. 

Looking around for anyone that might help, we spotted a gentleman in a red and black uniform with a leaning-tower-of-Pisa contraption that housed bags on top of it.  I went up to him and enquired if he knew where we needed to go, showing him my ticket.  His response was to hoist my luggage onto the Pisa tower and hold out his hand, indicating two Yuan with his fingers. 

I told my sister that the luggage guy would know where we needed to go, but we had to carry her luggage as his rackety contraption was now too heavy to take any more items.  By now, there were a dozen other folks gathered around whose luggage had also been loaded atop the leaning tower of luggage.  Soon we headed off.  It felt as if we walked miles down corridors.  We passed through two further sets of security, where our tickets were again checked.  Finally, we went down a staircase and on to the platform.  Here, voices were raised between the luggage carrying man and his customers.  It turned out that the argument was because my luggage was taken to our carriage first as we were in soft-sleeper and the rest were in hard-sleeper. 

On the train

The carriage we were ushered into had its own friendly stewardess and was spotlessly clean.  We were in a four berth compartment, sharing with two others.  It was a great relief to find that we had the bottom berths.  Why?  Because the upper berths were not just high being at head height, but only had one step to help one accomplish the acrobatic feat of swinging yourself up and on. 

The toilets were very clean when we first boarded.  However, they had to be cleaned regularly by the stewardess throughout the trip as the floor inexplicably got wet every hour or so. 

Surprise of surprises, the lady sharing with us could speak a little English and we learnt that she was heading to Cambodia.  We chatted and played cards, waiting for the train to depart.  We couldn’t wait to be out of the city perimeter so that we could really see China from the ground.  Pollution blankets the city and one often cannot  see the sun clearly.  Once we were about two hours out of Beijing, we did see some rice paddies and a few trees.  The scenery proved to be a disappointment because it rained from one end of the country to the other.  Along the route we encountered towns with buildings that sported peeling paint or no paint and gaping holes for windows.  It was not the view that we had expected, but did give us an insight into the daily lives of the ordinary Chinese that we would not otherwise have had.

The dining car was quite an experience.  All the tables were crowded even though we went early.  The menu consisted of frozen non-descript pre-packed meals.  Meals are not included in the price and after having a look at what was on offer, we decided to raid our chocolate supply instead.

Slippers are provided free to all soft-sleeper travellers.  This is not just a nice touch, it’s a necessity in a place where throat-clearing, followed by spitting is done every few minutes by one of the passing males in the corridor.  It is a very bad idea to go barefoot.  This aspect, although distressing at times, is practiced in most parts of China, especially up North, and one either becomes paranoid about it, or you stop noticing it after a while. 

A landslide had derailed a train of this very route just two weeks before our arrival, so we slept fitfully.  The rain came down steadily throughout the entire trip.  Also, the lady and gent we were sharing with struck up an impromptu date and chatted way into the night with the light on.

We arrived in Guangzhou the next morning, two hours later than the scheduled arrival time.  There was a great sense of camaraderie as the passengers eagerly lined the windows along the corridor to watch our approach into the city.  All in all, it had been a great adventure, our cross country rail trip from Beijing to China’s pearl delta.

Total duration of journey: 24 hours.

Very often when purchasing travel insurance travellers go on price, and sometimes on the reputation or brand of the company selling it.  However, which plan should you select?  There are comprehensive, visa-specific and non-comprehensive plans on the market.

Here are some guidelines based on a few factors to help you reach an appropriate choice:

• Destination
• Age
• Duration of your trip
• Sports
• Baggage

Destination

To a large extent the destination sets the risk level for the insurer and this affects the price.  If you are travelling to a country that is known for, say, kidnapping, you should choose a plan that covers this and covers it well.  Few policies include injury or death due to the acts of warfare or terrorists.

Some travel insurance policies are guided by the status of the destination country according to the British Foreign Office or US State Department web sites.  This is true even if the policy is issued in a third country and does not involve citizens of those lands.  If the destination is deemed a war zone then normal insurance will not apply.  (The insurers will reason that you have deliberately put yourself in harm’s way.)

If the place you may be travelling to is a tornado or earthquake zone then logically the policy you select should cover disruptions and damages, injury or death arising from those sorts of natural disaster.

Also related to the destination is visa-related health insurance.  Visitors from certain overseas lands that apply for an EU (Schengen) visa will have to offer proof of suitable insurance without which the visa will not be issued.  Medical cover for Schengen visa purposes is more expensive than regular cover.

Age

If you are over 85 years you will find it difficult to obtain suitable cover.  The age varies by company and can be lower, so shop around if this applies to you.  Senior cover starts from around 65 and goes up in steps from there.

If you cannot obtain cover then check out what your regular medical insurance scheme covers: you may still be okay to travel.

For younger folks there is student cover that applies to those taking gap years or extended holidays that will last a few months.  The maximum age for this varies from 29 through to 35 depending on the individual insurance company.

Duration of your trip

The longer the trip, the more pricey it will be, though the rate per day will likely reduce.  Here, one would want to shop around to find the best policy and the most appropriate company.  A less comprehensive policy will be cheaper, but read the small print and note the benefits and exclusions, so you know exactly what is covered.  You will find it gives greater peace of mind to have more extensive coverage.  The longer that you are travelling the more likely it is that some sort of medical emergency may befall you.

Sports

If you are going to be participating in dangerous sports such as bungee jumping, white-water rafting or paragliding, you will need to state this to the insurance company at the time of taking out the cover.  Such activities do not usually preclude cover but they affect risk and therefore the price and you will need to declare your intentions if you expect to obtain cover.

Some policies will not cover these activities at all and you’d be in a sticky situation if you’ve broken a leg while skiing to find that out afterwards.

Footnote: Baggage

Though this article is mainly concerned with medical insurance, you find that baggage insurance is frequently available as an option on the medical insurance, particularly if you are purchasing insurance online.

The amounts that are covered for lost luggage vary from one plan to another.  If you’re carrying expensive cameras and suchlike, you need to make certain that they are fully covered.  The best is if you are permitted to nominate specific items.  That way there is no uncertainty.

If you have expensive items you may find it better to include a travel option in your comprehensive insurance than to try include them in a travel policy.  All too often travel policies have a limit in value per claimed item, and it is low.  So your claim would be subjected to “averaging”, even though the total sum insured was correct.

Brace for Impact

Some airlines only provide detailed information on the brace position to business class passengers and up, even for a fee.  (In mid-2011 British Airways were charging £135 for a course giving you full and proper instruction on emergency procedures.)  Here on DIY Travel Expert you can read it for free!

To be frank, the safety charts are often of scant use at all in helping you to understand the brace position.  Airlines are stingy about space and cram as many passengers into the cabin as possible.  As a result. few passengers have the luxury of the amount of space depicted in the diagrams, where the seat in front of you is not a factor.  Most times you are going to have to brace yourself right against the back of the seat in front of you.

Emergency

In an emergency the captain will usually make a brief announcement warning passengers to brace for impact.  Under certain circumstances the cabin crew will make the announcement, for instance if they recognise that something unusual and bad is happening during a takeoff.

You may only have a few seconds to respond.  The captain may say as little as “Brace for impact” or “Prepare for crash landing”.  At that stage he has troubles of his own and you should not expect lengthy instructions.

Cabin crew have their own positions which are different from yours, because their seats are different.

Preparation

1. Before you leave home: One seldom thinks of clothing as a factor in crash survival but it is worth a brief word.  Experts consider the best dress for a flight to be long pants, a shirt with long sleeves and closed lace-up shoes.  High heels are going to have to stay on the plane if you crash and you will lose time in removing them.  Sandals may not protect you from sharp debris or glass.  Nylon clothing is to be avoided because it burns readily and has poor thermal properties. Wool is best for thermal insulation when wet, and cotton has excellent wicking properties if you come down in a jungle, for instance.  If you are flying over snow and ice in bad weather, consider carrying a warm jacket on your lap.

2. It has been suggested that you should buckle and unbuckle your belt a few times when you first sit down, to create “muscle-memory” of where to find the buckle.  It is in front of you, not to the side as it is in cars.  You do not want to have to think about where your buckle is in the possibly confusing aftermath of a crash.

3. After the safety briefing, count and memorise the number of rows to the nearest exit.  It could be dark or smoky when you need to find your way out.

4. Before a crash ensure that your seat belt is securely fastened.  This means having it with no slack, and pushing it down as far as it will go, to avoid internal injuries.  (You want the belt to stop your movement using your pelvis, which is strong, and not your gut.)

5. Put your seat fully upright before getting into the brace position.

British brace position

Lean forward and rest your head on the seat in front of you as far below the tops of the seats as possible.  Place your hands on your head, but not interlocked.  One hand resting on top of the other.  Your feet should be tucked underneath your knees, flat on the floor.  Pull your elbows in towards your body.

The UK guidelines are more recent than the US ones, having been mandated in 1993 following analysis of injuries in the 1989 Kegworth disaster (British Midland Flight 92).

American brace position

Lean forward and rest your head on the seat in front of you as far below the tops of the seats as possible.  Place your hands on the seat in front as well, with one hand holding the other wrist.  Position your forearms at the sides of your head.  Your feet should be tucked underneath your knees, flat on the floor.

If the seat in front is too far away from you to lean on, bend over and put your arms under your knees, holding onto your forearms.  Alternatively, you can hold your ankles.

Guidelines for infant’s brace position

While holding your baby on your lap, adopt the position as best you can, holding the infant with one arm and making sure that the head is protected.

The rationale for the position

The reasoning behind the brace position is the following.  Having your head against the nearest surface that it would bang into during the landing reduces the possibility of head trauma as the impact is then reduced or eliminated.  Keeping your elbows in reduces flailing (arms being flung around from the force of the landing).

Having your feet tucked beneath your knees, as far back as they will go, reduces the risk of your shins or leg being broken on the base of the seat in front.  With broken shins you cannot escape without assistance.  Broken limbs were a contributory factor in the 1989 Kegworth disaster and Korean Airlines Flight 801.

By placing your arms at the sides of your face it will protect your head from being struck by debris.

Though you might not think it, the tray tables and the seat-backs are constructed of material designed to give some cushioning during impact.

You should not interlock your fingers because if you do that and you are struck by a heavy piece of luggage or debris, you will break all ten fingers.  Then how will you unbuckle your seat belt?  Put your dominant hand on your head and cover it with your other hand.  The changes are that even if some fingers are broken, you will still have the full use of your main hand to unbelt yourself, open the door and other such tasks.

By positioning your head as low as possible you somewhat reduce the risk of being clouted by the overhead baggage racks falling on you – the seats will then take the blow.  If you are over 6 ft in height then you may have difficulty in getting low enough.  Airlines “hate” tall people and big people.

The brace position saves lives

Some have been sceptical about the benefits of the brace position.  Accident investigations have confirmed that the brace position reduces injuries and saves lives.  In particular it reduces possible head trauma and ensures that you can escape from the stricken aeroplane without needing aid.

A good example is that of the emergency landing on the Hudson river by flight US1549 on 15 January 2009.  All 155 passengers on board survived because they experienced no head trauma and could evacuate the plane.  (However, pictures of the passengers standing on the wings with the plane in the river show that only 18 of them used their life-jackets!)

Another instance of the brace position saving lives was Scandinavian Airlines flight 751 which crashed and everybody survived.  Everyone on board had adopted the brace position.

Listen to the safety instructions, read the safety chart, and know how to do the brace position properly.

See also our articles on In-flight safety – hazard awareness and Deep vein thrombosis – protect yourself and Flying when you are ill – what to do

bye-bye plane

One way that a journey can go wrong is when you have connecting flights.  One of the most frustrating of these can be when you end up running from one terminal to another to make a connecting flight, only to discover that the flight has already closed!  This can easily happen to you when you make DIY flight bookings with multiple sectors.

Each airline has its own rules but the industry norm is that you must allow two hours for international connections.  An hour is usually enough for domestic and regional connections.  But as we discuss below, sometimes you need to allow even longer.

Here are some of the connecting time factors that are taken account of and that you should take into consideration if doing your own booking:

• Are you arriving and departing out of the same terminal?
• Will your luggage be checked through?  (Must be the same airline or an alliance partner)
• Will you have to pass through customs before connecting?
• Is the departure terminal in a different airport?  (Such as in Mumbai and Beijing)
• Will you be connecting between two specific airports such as Heathrow and Gatwick in London.

The airport that you are at can make a big difference too.  Some bookings that look fine on paper are also going to result in missed flights.

Mumbai has a minimum connecting time of 3 hours for international flights connecting with domestic flights.  You need to travel from one airport to a completely separate airport that shares some infrastructure and the same airport code.

If you are flying in from certain cities and then connecting domestically, the delay can be even longer.  For example, connections from Abu Dhabi, Doha, Jeddah and Dubai into Mumbai, all require a minimum of four hours if you are flying onwards in India.

We have specifically mentioned Mumbai and Beijing as both of these have the unusual situation of having two airports that fall under the same airport code.  If you didn’t do your homework on these two prior to your trip with just a two hour connection, there could be a nasty surprise on the other end.

When will the airline not pay for a missed connection?

• If you have violated the minimum connecting time for your booking.

The airlines call it “MCT” – Minimum Connecting Time.  It is the minimum permissible time between the scheduled arrival of one flight and the departure time of another.

• If you are not booked on a “through ticket”.

A through ticket is where all the sectors of the booking are on one ticket.  If you are making the booking yourself then you can usually only do this with a single airline but a travel agent can create a through ticket combining different airlines.  This offers certain protections.

Potential for double trouble

If the Minimum Connecting Time is not honoured (and you are not on a through ticket) then you can end up missing the flight, not being compensated, and still having to pay penalties!

Here is how it works: Let’s suppose the first leg of your journey is with British Airways and your connecting booking is on say, Emirates.  If the British Airways flight is late and you miss the Emirates connection, Emirates (who had nothing at all to do with carrying you on the first leg) will not compensate you for missing the flight.  You will also have to pay penalties to get on the next flight because from their perspective, it was your problem that you missed the connection, not theirs.

Even if you have used a travel agent you should always check the minimum connecting times yourself, and whether you have a through-ticket.  Just because you get one confirmation does not mean that it is a through ticket.  Examine the confirmation and check the ticket numbers.  If there is one number, then its one ticket and it is a through-ticket.  If its more than one number, you may not be on a through ticket and that is when would be a good idea to check directly with the agent.