Flying With Knives

[chuckschilling]

Back in the day, I used to fly with my Spyderco Snapit in my front pocket. I'd go right through the metal detectors and never had a problem.

The thing is that all of this worry over knives is silly. A knife can't bring down an airplane - period. Only a foolish response to someone with a knife can. Now that the cockpit is locked during flights, there is absolutely no risk to the plane from anyone wielding a typical knife.

 

[Ijfleming]

Back in the day, I used to fly with my Spyderco Snapit in my front pocket. I'd go right through the metal detectors and never had a problem.

The thing is that all of this worry over knives is silly. A knife can't bring down an airplane - period. Only a foolish response to someone with a knife can. Now that the cockpit is locked during flights, there is absolutely no risk to the plane from anyone wielding a typical knife.

No, but there's still the dude next to you with the funky body odour, the screaming baby 2 aisles down, and the punk-ass kid that's kicking your seat the whole ride down.

 

[carrot]

I have flown 6 times in the past two years. I have usually checked about 3-4 knives in my luggage, not counting a Swiss Army Knife or two that I put in my toiletry bag. I zip tie my knives closed so TSA can't play with them, and I zip tie them all to the metal rails inside my suitcase and then pile all my clothes on top. I think this is a fair strategy because what I read is that they're looking for quick snatch and grabs for the most part.

Thankfully my suitcases have never been searched but I did get a SwissTool taken at a checkpoint when I forgot to pack it. TSA has been for the most part very courteous to me. Smiling and making direct eye contact may be the key.

I mailed back a very rare discontinued Spyderco and my Dozier the last time I flew... the friend who mailed it out for me had a misunderstanding and sent them First Class or parcel post and I spent half a month worrying about an estimated $400-500 in the mail when I'd had my Sebenza safely zip-tied to my luggage.

 

[screwthe49ers]

That probably will depend on how alert the security people are. If they pay attention to your keys you could get it confiscated.. It's probably better off in your luggage.

Btw, I want one of those now

They carry 'em at Auto Zone.

 

[Newb]

What is the point of sending 25 fully armed people through security.

Yeah, I went through the same thing in the military. A switchblade was part of my uniform, and I kept a sheath knife in my boot, they let me aboard with them in the old days. But just think, the pilots are scanned and frisked for any sort of pointy object that might make their layovers bearable. As if they'd need a weapon to do whatever they wish with the plane? Perhaps they might defend themselves with a knife, that'd be bad. Of course, every plane has a crash axe in the cockpit, and pilots have used them many times to defend the cockpit. But don't let them have a pocket knife or multi-tool.

The thing is that all of this worry over knives is silly. A knife can't bring down an airplane - period. Only a foolish response to someone with a knife can. Now that the cockpit is locked during flights, there is absolutely no risk to the plane from anyone wielding a typical knife.

Kinda, but not quite true. The pilots do come out of the cockpit fairly regularly. And there is some concern that a pilot may be lured out of the cockpit to "save" a flight attendant who is being attacked. There are numerous scenarios involving knife-wielding passengers that can go very badly, so the ban on knives will certainly stay. The other bans on liquids are very unfortunate, but wise.

 

[scotchleaf]

I really likes the world back in early 2001. Then customs and security people were sane people. I had my Fallkniven F1 in my carry on when flying from Sarajevo. SFOR ID is king when passing airport security I managed to get outside the security filters when i had a to wait in München. They discovered my knife in the X-ray. I had to go with one of the ZOLL-guys. He looked at my papers and when he realised that I was military, he just shook his head and said "dont take it on in the plane" and sent me off with my F1 still in my carry on. However when I and the rest of my group (25 Swedish SFOR troops) were to fly from Eagle Base in Tuzla, the US airport people made us go through the security check. What is the point of sending 25 fully armed people through security. We all had assault rifles, 9mm pistols, knives, flak wests, kevlar, multitools, weapon parts and whatnot. Can someone explain why we had to take out all metal from our pockets, just to put it back on the other side of the x-ray machine. We were Swedish soldiers flying home with a Swedish plane. Pathetic.

We can't be too careful with swedes...funny story!

 

[Vivi]

Well I'm enjoying the mountains and skateparks of Utah currently. I just put some knives in my socks and they got through. It was pretty dumb that I couldn't keep my Vic Classic on my keyring but I walked through security and on to two different planes carrying two skateboards.

First thing I did when I got my luggage was clip my Caly Jr ZDP to my pocket then put my Leatherman Squirt in the pocket.

 

[T. Erdelyi]

I've flown with decent knives in my checked luggage. Not custom but decent. I roll them up in a pair of socks, stuff the socks in a shoe and the shoe goes in a zip lock bag. I also use TSA locks on my bags. I've flown to the UK and around the US and so far so good.

That's the way I travel, the TSA locks are your best bet, I traveled with my mother to Europe awhile back and we both brought knives back, I had TSA locks she had her own, hers were broke by the TSA who didn't steal 'em, (the knives) but the baggage handlers did take 'em.

The TSA was able to lock my TSA endorsed locks back up and all my knives made it, the baggage hadlers moved onto easier prey, (Probably my mom's bags.

 

[antonio_luiz]

I usually keep one in each of my checked luggage. I also have a nail clippers in with my shaving kit in my carry on for opening the zip-ties on my checked luggage.

Nail clippers and files are banned for carry-on in Oz

You'll just have to chew thru those zip ties at the other end

 

[nodh]

We can't be too careful with swedes...funny story!

What was the meaning of putting the weapons through the X-ray, did they check for weapons in the weapons. We just picked them up afterwards and walked out on the tarmac as armed as we were before.

Anyway. The airport security, or even any kind of security is getting over the top right now. Anyone remember all the planes that was highjacked back in 1978-1980? Athens airport was hijack central, it didnt matter which plane you got on, you ended up in Lebanon anyway. Well, then the security rules were changed accordingly. However those highjacks happened in Europe and the European aviation authorities couldnt beef up security too much since that would intimidate people coming from the US and that wasnt accepted. Then the Al Qaida flying circus started, and that was a US problem and immediately there was no problem enforcing rules that would start at least a trade war if it happened the other way around (all european travellers can pass but we have to search the US people).
The threat that resulted in the small bottles in a ziploc bag is just as real as Saddams WMDs, you know those Rumsfeld showed to the UN.

If I ever go to the US I will fly to Canada instead and drive over the border. Less STASI that way.

Now the DHS wants to get every information there is in databases about European citizens from the European governmenets. Open info and classified doesnt matter, they want it all. Does the European governments get to sniff around in US secret databases just for the heck of it, didnt think so.
What would you US people think if you knew that some guy in France were reading up on everything you have done since you were born. Where you were born, your parents, what illnesses you have had, what car you have, who you have kids with, where you went to school, your grades, your military grades (we still have conscription), your results at university, your memberships in different groups and organisations, your criminal record, your phone records, your internet surf habits, your health record (here we get paid by the govt when we are ill), your addess, your neighbours, your parking tickets, what you bought at the store yesterday (you used your discount card) and whatever. Would the average Joe US guy accept that or would they not care. Relax, it is all in the "war against terror" so just sit down and relax and feel safe from the bad guys.

 

[Newb]

One of the main goals of terrorism is to make the population of your enemy unhappy with their government. Terrorism forces the government to take away freedoms from the population, which should cause discontent. The government will have to look like they're doing something to quell discontent: either fighting the terrorists, or giving in to their demands. Unfortunately, neither option can really work. You can't fight an ideal in open war, and giving in always causes the terrorists to increase their confidence and demands. The effort to win over the hearts and minds of our enemies' population is normally a decade-long effort.

 

[Bufford]

I havn't had any problems flying over the years. Here is what I do. Buy the strongest best quality hard sided suitcase available. Then buy a good lock, not the cheap ones, as those are the ones laying all over the airport ramps. A good suitcase is going to be less of a target than an unlocked or cheap one.

 

[nodh]

I think it was summed up quite well in the HBO series Generation Kill.
"Lets invade all the shit countries, take over and give them McDonalds and Starbucks and then just leave."

The hearts and minds take a long time but in the end it is the only thing that works. However the religious part is a big thing to deal with too.
The "western" world keeps blaiming the "arabs" for everything, but if you look at it from a historical point of view, the "arabs" are only going through the phase that the "christians" did about 700 years ago. When the crusades went on to "liberate" Jerusalem and all that. It is the same thing all over again. Some deranged soldiers sent on a mission from "God", to do miracles and such. The weapons and equipment all paid by rich countries in order to spread the right faith and so on. Then it was France and Germany pouring in the money, now it is Saudi and Iran. Then they had horses and crossbows armour, now they have AK47, RPG7 and car bombs.
The crusades was lost because of poor tactical decisions. Good will save us and so on. The more swift saracens with lighter but more efficient weapons beat them.
So how do we stop the terrorists? We can not send Richard Lionheart, he failed last time. We can not occupy the Khaaba and send saturation bombings on Mecka and Medina, that would be like poking in a hornets nest. I guess the only way is to give people something else to do, something more "exciting" than going to the mosque. However it can not too exciting so the priests ban it.
The best way to handle the repercussions from 9/11 would have been to just "ignore" it. Not ignoring that lots of people were killed but letting the rest of the society move along as it did a week before. New rules at the airports are just one of those things that will always remind everyone that the bad guys has won.
Lets instead say that you have another incident where 3000 people dies. A ferry accident in the Phillipines usually comes quite close. In 1994 the ferry Estonia sank/was sunk in the Baltic sea, killing over 850 people, about a third of 9/11. There were no new ferry regulations because of that, wellmnot any that effects the Average Joe. People are not forced to wear lifewests all the time when on a ferry and such.

The bad guys do not need to do any more big things, they just release a new tape reminding people of it about once a year. The Average Joe society has lost to the bad guys and will never be the same again. How can be forget the atrocities the governments all over the world has done in the "war against terror". How can European tourists ever forget being treated like terrorists just because the fancy "terrorist list" had a name that was almost similar to theirs.

Dismantle all these STASI antics and pay damages to all the people that has been ill treated by it. Then all the people in charge should be liberated of their rights as citizens rights and their wordly possesions sold to pay damages. This is to avert anyone never to conjur up these fascist ideas again. A former head of department this and that living in a cardboard box under an overpass gives a much more strong signal than just a year in a fancy prison.