OPEN OR LOCKED CASE?

[caroline]

quote:Originally posted by blott

Also, another point in a different direction, you need to put anything electronic or with batteries in your hand luggage.

Are you sure Blott?
I always put electrical stuff and batteries in our cases - at check in one of the security questions is something like "Has anything electrical in your case ever been repaired or altered?" so I'm pretty sure you can pack them.

[Nostromo]

Same here. I have always put my electric / electronic stuff securely packed and LOCKED in my hard Samsonite case and never been asked a question. We travel regularly to the US, usually to JFK Airport or Dulles. I would be really worried about not locking my cases. In some Americam airports (Detroit and Atlanta to quote some) you can see that the luggage is often transported in a rather slipshod, offhand manner. I have seen cases precariously balanced on their hampers waiting to be loaded into the plane with bored looking staff standing by seemingly without a clue. I know that it is on the 'other' side of the barrier, but how do we know who can be trusted in a place that employs thousands? Insurance or no insurance, one just does not like losing one's personal things.

[blott]

Absolutely Caroline! "You should bring that laptop on board as a carry-on, but make sure the batteries are good. You may have to demonstrate that electronic items such as laptops and video cameras are what they look like by showing that they work. Hence the need for good batteries. Any electronic devices that aren’t in working order will look suspicious to security. Security screenings are supposed to leave computers unharmed, but you might ask for a manual inspection."