Close call at the airport with my new MT LCC

A

Art M

Joined
Dec 29, 1998
Messages
284
For years I've been hopping on planes with a knife in my carry-on laptop bag and never experienced any problems until last week. I had my MT LCC in my bag and sent it through the x-ray machine. Next thing I know the security guy asks me to step aside - he said he saw a knife in the bag. I told him he did see a knife and show him where it was. He looks at it very admiringly but says, "I don't think you're gonna be able to get on the plane with this." Now, I become real anxious because I have a flight to catch and don't have time to run back to the car and put my knife in there. He calls over his supervisor who opens the knife and holds the blade up to her ID badge, which was hanging around her neck. She said her badge is four inches and if the knife is shorter then her badge then it's OK to carry on. The blade just misses the edge of her badge when layed flat against it. Yippee!! She tells me no problem and hands my baby back to me. By the way, this happened at Philadelphia International and I was flying United Airlines.

Art
 
Wow, nerve racking I'll bet! I just went through there not too long ago, but before I had my LCC....was your knife partial serrations?

G2
 
Good to know what the standard is there; I'll be flying United out of Philadelphia International next week.

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Dave

Let no one ever from henceforth say one word in any way countenancing war. It is dangerous even to speak of how here and there the individual may gain some hardship of soul by it. For war is hell, and those who institute it are criminals. Siegfried Loraine Sassoon
 
Ugh, now I'm really worried!! I'm planning on attending a show in January and will be taking several fixed blades. I was going to fly, but now I'm not so sure. If they won't let me carry my knives with me, I don't think I'm flying. No way I'm checking them in. Even if they didn't get stolen, they might get lost and the show would be over.

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Always think of your fellow knife makers as partners in the search for the perfect blade, not as people trying to compete with you and your work!
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And to think hoe many "not quite legal" swithchblades I have smuggled through with no problem.
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About 10 years ago, traveling in uniform, they made me check a camillus sheeps foot with marlinspike. I think it was because of the marlinspike because the guy said "Jesus! whats that?" I had a hard time convincing him it wasn't for puncturing people. I wonder if there really is a "standard". It seems more like a when/if and at their discretion kinda thing.
 
Art M, why would you risk a nice, expensive knife like an LCC going through airport security? You must have a smaller folder that you can carry at an airport or other places where a knife will come under greater than normal scrutiny. THis is when you need a a BM 330, an Umfaan, a small William Henry, Spyderco Dragonfly, Toad, Cricket, Co-Pilot, or small CKRT S-2 just to name a few. There are lots of cool smaller knives that one can carry into a restrictive space like an airport.
 
I know someone has already asked but I'm interested to know if the blade was partially serrated or not also..??

Either way, glad you didn't have a problem with it.

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You never really know what the airlines / security will do on any given day.

I once had to check a small socket wrench set because the airline employee said it was too dangerous to carry aboard.

I asked him what he thought was dangerous about it and he told me that it could be used to dismantle the plane in flight.

No, I'm not joking, it really happened.

The worst of it was, how can you even argue with stupidity of that magnitude.

BTW, it's wasn't like I was an escaped felon or anything, I was an active duty Navy pilot traveling on orders at the time.

Bottom line, there are a lot of really stupid people out there and some of them work at the airport.
 
Steve B, I know this is off topic but it has knife content. When I was in junior high school, many years ago, a kid dismantled the drivers seat on the school bus with a SAK. Removing the screws one at a time untill one day while going around a corner the bus driver, seat and all, fell over and rolled into the stair well. The bus jumped a curb and hit a pin oak head on. Jim Stallings if your out there you should stand up and take a bow now. In this place you would be a hero. Just don't fly on the same plane with me.
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chet
 
There is a sign at the local airport that says "FAA regulations limit knives to less than 4 inches", anything less is the security person's opinion or local policy. I have gone through airport security with a full-size serrated M2 AFCK, it raised eyebrows and they did measure it but they let me through with it. If in doubt, always, always carry an envelope addressed to yourself with enough postage to get your knife home. If they won't let you through, mail it back to yourself rather than give the guard a birthday present.
 
For those who asked, the MT LCC in questions was a plain edge - no serrations.

Anthony, as to why I would choose to carry a "nice, expensive knife like the LCC going through airport security"---Well, quite honestly, I guess I just got a little careless. After years of business travel all throughout the country I've never, not once, been stopped because of a knife in my laptop bag. Oh well, live and learn. I lucked out this time
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Art
 
Originally posted by Steve6:


I once had to check a small socket wrench set because the airline employee said it was too dangerous to carry aboard.

I asked him what he thought was dangerous about it and he told me that it could be used to dismantle the plane in flight.

B]
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this is the funniest story of stupidity I've read up here in at least a year...

 
That's funny, I ahd the exact same experience with the same knife. I was merely meeting my parents at Dulles airport though. In order to get to the gates you have to clear security, so I just walked up and asked if I could pass carrying the knife. I whip out the LCC, and the security drone calls over his supervisor. The supervisor opens the knife and does the ID badge thing.... and then cuts the sh*t out of his thumb trying to close the blade! He was so embarrased he handed me the knife and waves me through. I had to snicker as I walked away.... the sod didn't know his liner lock from his elbow.
 
You'd think that security would be trained on these simple things, like how to close a liner-locking knife
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Cameron

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"Look deep, deep inside and you will find a place of anger, vengeance, and brutality. Go there. It is your last hope to conquer the truly wicked."
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[This message has been edited by BalisongMan (edited 11-25-2000).]
 
Originally posted by BalisongMan:
You'd think that security would be trained on these simple things, like how to close a liner-locking knife
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Click to expand...

They don't want them to know anything about knives. The less they know, the more they fear. The more they fear, the more they go along with every ban, restriction, question, harassment.

 
That's right - keep'em dumb and ignorant and all the more they'll depend and rely on big government.

Art
 
A different approach would be to use smaller knives. When you are on the aeroplane, most of the cutting and slicing will be on the super-hard plastic they use for the (plastic) food!

I carry a small Kershaw "Little Deschutes" money-clip knife, which is x-rayed when I travel. Since it is in the wallet, and the wallet passes the x-ray machine, they are not prepared to find anything there, so they will miss it. Even if they find it, the blade is less than an inch or so.
You even get a pair of small scissors on the knive.
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Thomas J Ekman
SWEDEN
 
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