4 ms·

just to clarify ... a member of gatwick airport security staff said that you? >"Hey idiot, get your goddamn bags off the (expletive) belt! Hurry the hell up!"

just to clarify ... a member of gatwick airport security staff said that you? >"Hey idiot, get your goddamn bags off the (expletive) belt! Hurry the hell up!" >"God (expletive) damn you! Are you trying to make my (expletive) life hard?! Just take your bags and go, you're holding up my line!" That all sounds so un-british I can't imagine this playing out. Which part of security were you in? I've flown through heathrow, gatwick and other uk airports loads of times and never seen anything approaching that level of rudeness.

owenversteeg 8y ago
Really? I've gone through a good number of British airports and I've seen similar scenes play out (typically not directed at me, though.) British security/police seem to take their power a bit too far very often, in my experience. They have absolutely no problem with a little shouting. Of the first-world immigration officials I've had to interact with I'd rank them perhaps second worst, for general cluelessness and authoritarian behavior. The typical British "don't say or do anything, just tut" behavior does apply often: Public displays of racism? Civil liberties being taken away? A simple tut will do. But if you're British immigration, then shouting incorrect or confusing instructions is just part of the job. The number of times I've seen this is too high, and that's not even including the number of patronizing and wrong instructions I've gotten, either. For example, getting shouted at that I should have presented my American passport when I presented my Dutch passport (...what?)
- PietdeVries 8y ago
  "British security/police seem to take their power a bit too far very often"... And that is the actual problem here as well. At the airport you end up in a "your rights end here" zone. According to the original story, the questioned person had no right to a laywer as he was not arrested. But he was also not free to go. So there you are: stuck between a rock and a hard place... Sure, you have every right not to unlock your phone. But you will go nowhere, miss your flight, your connecting flight, etc. And all the officers just go home when their shift is over and forget your case ever happened...
AnIdiotOnTheNet 8y ago
> That all sounds so un-british Consider in your calculations that a queue was being endangered by the behavior they were complaining about.
jen20 8y ago
I can absolutely imagine this at any airport besides Heathrow in the U.K. Heathrow tends to be a bit more polite and more efficient.
- philpem 8y ago
  Can confirm! London City, as I said, is a hair nicer but that's primarily because it's a business airport which generally caters for a small number of flights (compared to Heathrow or Gatwick).
srean 8y ago
Can confirm. Heathrow terminal 4 staff is one of the rudest I have encountered. They have not been rude to me personally but every time I have been through that terminal I have seen staff being rude and racist to travellers. I have seen folks being physically pushed around to form queues, to make them hurry. This is not a one time experience. Dont recall if they were British Airways staff or airport staff.

owenversteeg 8y ago

Really? I've gone through a good number of British airports and I've seen similar scenes play out (typically not directed at me, though.) British security/police seem to take their power a bit too far very often, in my experience. They have absolutely no problem with a little shouting. Of the first-world immigration officials I've had to interact with I'd rank them perhaps second worst, for general cluelessness and authoritarian behavior. The typical British "don't say or do anything, just tut" behavior does apply often: Public displays of racism? Civil liberties being taken away? A simple tut will do. But if you're British immigration, then shouting incorrect or confusing instructions is just part of the job. The number of times I've seen this is too high, and that's not even including the number of patronizing and wrong instructions I've gotten, either. For example, getting shouted at that I should have presented my American passport when I presented my Dutch passport (...what?)

PietdeVries 8y ago
"British security/police seem to take their power a bit too far very often"... And that is the actual problem here as well. At the airport you end up in a "your rights end here" zone. According to the original story, the questioned person had no right to a laywer as he was not arrested. But he was also not free to go. So there you are: stuck between a rock and a hard place... Sure, you have every right not to unlock your phone. But you will go nowhere, miss your flight, your connecting flight, etc. And all the officers just go home when their shift is over and forget your case ever happened...

AnIdiotOnTheNet 8y ago

> That all sounds so un-british Consider in your calculations that a queue was being endangered by the behavior they were complaining about.

jen20 8y ago

I can absolutely imagine this at any airport besides Heathrow in the U.K. Heathrow tends to be a bit more polite and more efficient.

philpem 8y ago
Can confirm! London City, as I said, is a hair nicer but that's primarily because it's a business airport which generally caters for a small number of flights (compared to Heathrow or Gatwick).

srean 8y ago

Can confirm. Heathrow terminal 4 staff is one of the rudest I have encountered. They have not been rude to me personally but every time I have been through that terminal I have seen staff being rude and racist to travellers. I have seen folks being physically pushed around to form queues, to make them hurry. This is not a one time experience. Dont recall if they were British Airways staff or airport staff.