Another US Air Travel thread

[FiReSTaRT]

I am about to go to South America, with a connecting flight from Miami. My travel agent usually handles trips to Europe so she got fairly paranoid, almost to the point of advising me to travel naked and buy my clothes in Chile lol. Here are some questions I have:
1) Can I take flammable stuff in checked luggage? (mouthwash, aftershave, spray deodorant)
2) She advised me against putting shaving soap into my carryon. Did anyone ever get a bar of soap confiscated?
3) Any other thoughts on what I can and cannot check?

Thanks.

[DMS]

Copied/pasted from an airline website:

* Effective November 10, 2006, the TSA has advised that travelers may now carry through security checkpoints travel-size toiletries (3.4 ounces/100 ml or less) that fit comfortably in ONE, QUART-SIZE, clear plastic re-sealable bag. At the security checkpoint passengers will be asked to remove the clear plastic re-sealable bag from their accessible baggage and place it in a separate bin or on the conveyor belt for screening. X-raying these items separately will allow TSA security officers to more easily examine the declared items. In addition, prescription liquid, gel and aerosol medications, baby formula/milk/food, and diabetic glucose treatments must be declared at the checkpoint for additional screening if they are not included in the ONE QUART clear plastic re-sealable bag.
* Passengers who attempt to bring undeclared liquids, gels, or aerosols into the sterile area without providing to the TSA for separate screening may be subjected to secondary screening.
* Passengers who purchase liquids, gels, and/or aerosols in the sterile area are now allowed to take them onboard the aircraft.
* Duty Free liquids, gels, and/or aerosols purchased inside the sterile area may be brought onboard the aircraft by passengers, and no longer must be delivered to the aircraft.

***************************
The container size has to be 3.4 oz or less - a larger one partially used that has 3 oz or less remaining isn't allowed. I'd put the soap into a checked bag.

[FiReSTaRT]

Thanks. I think I'll pack everything in the checked luggage and hope for the best. Do they allow mouthwash, aftershave and spray deodorants in checked luggage?

[DMS]

Thanks. I think I'll pack everything in the checked luggage and hope for the best. Do they allow mouthwash, aftershave and spray deodorants in checked luggage?

Yep, no problems there as far as I know. I routinely travel with all the above in checked baggage. Mine seems to get picked for opening & inspection most of the time on my outbound flight and I've never had any of those items removed.

[FiReSTaRT]

After checking out the TSA website, I see why those South Park gyroscopes are more comfortable than flying
1) Having to take off our shoes.. So un-hygenic and I can't see how metal detectors/chemical sniffers don't work if you're wearing shoes.
2) Secondary screening in a separate area sounds so Gestapo/1984 to me.
3) Even if they change their gloves for each piece of inspected luggage, how will I ever trust a random minimum wage slave to handle shave-ready razors?

[Scrapyard Ape]

Even if they change their gloves for each piece of inspected luggage, how will I ever trust a random minimum wage slave to handle shave-ready razors?

I'm going to advise you to NOT bring your razors with you on the flight.... Not in carryon bags OR checked baggage. They will be confiscated from carry on bags and checked baggage can get "lost" in transit.(my very first straight disappeared in this manner years ago... I'm still bitter about that)

Don't think that a DE will be left alone either. If you take one, make triple sure you don't take ANY blades along with you.(you'll have to buy new ones at your destination) They get all pissy about the possibility of the presence of a loose blade. I posted about this in another thread several weeks ago.

If you absolutely must have a straight with you, and your stay in South America is going to be an extended one, then you will be much better off shipping the razor to yourself at your destination.(make sure it's insured) It may be expensive, but the lack of red-tape hassle is worth it. If your stay is going to be a short one, then just buy a few disposables and suffer for a while.... that beats having your razor swiped or confiscated for "national security" reasons.

[steve]

After checking out the TSA website, I see why those South Park gyroscopes are more comfortable than flying
1) Having to take off our shoes.. So un-hygenic and I can't see how metal detectors/chemical sniffers don't work if you're wearing shoes.

From my experience, many shoes have steel shanks in the sole. These always set of the metal detectors anyway. There is no real way to know if it's just a steel shank or someone modified their sole to conceal a knife or such. By taking them off, they go through the X-ray machine where a proper determination can be made. This used to drive me crazy as I wear cowboy boots and they have that steel in the sole. I know some workboots and even dress shoes have this as well.

As for un-hygenic: two thoughts:

Not much more un-hygenic than packing a couple hundred people into a flying sardine can when there's alot of coughing and sneezing happening.

I agree there is a lot about the TSA (thousands standing around) that can be improved but I guess I'm a little biased right now. I'm happy to endure a little more security if it means 3k more of my fellow citizens don't get killed. As human nature is wont to do, we usually knee jerk react to a situation then the pendulum swings back to a more reasonable position later. It's not necessarily right, but it is the way of things sometimes.

By the way, the last paragraph isn't intended to suggest that others don't care about American lives. I'm just trying to establish a frame of reference for my statements.

I'll be facing a similiar thing as my family hijacks me in May to take me to Florida. I want to take my straight with me but I don't think I'll be doing so.

By way of suggestion, contact Josh. He travels with his straight alot from what I've understood. I'm sure he could give you some ideas for safely getting it through security checks.

Have a safe trip!

[DMS]

TSA (thousands standing around)

I generally fly a couple times a month, haven't had any problems with straights in checked baggage. I pack them inside my Dopp bag. My view is that a checked bag is no more or less likely to go missing if it has straights in it, that depends more on which airline you're flying and what airports the bag has to transit through. Your worst odds would probably be USAIR combined with a connection at DeGaulle in Paris.

It can be tough choosing which razors to take along since you want a good shave away from home but don't want to risk your best razors or ones that would be tough to replace in case of loss/damage. I take two in case the edge goes bad on one of them, along with one of Tony's wide paddles for stropping, diamond pasted on one side.

I bought one of the new Gilette Fusion razors recently and tried it just yesterday, have to say it's a real improvement over the M3. It was ridiculously easy to get a good shave with and I couldn't believe how clean it got my neck in two passes. It's better than a straight for me there and I think I'll just use this one for traveling in the future rather than bother with straights on the road. They only cost about $10 and come with two blade cartridges, beat the hell out of disposable razors in performance.

[azjoe]

Miami might be the least of your worries.

If you do much international travel you'll quickly discover every country has a different set of scary things. Depending on where you go (and what security alert they've had recently) will determine to what extent you'll be subjected to unexpected and/or invasive tactics.

After quite a few years of international travel, I'm pretty used to airports with guards carrying machine guns, tanks sitting alongside ramps and runways, armored vehicles meeting planes on the tarmac and transporting the passengers to the terminal in odd vehicles... even being diverted to another country! I've also become accustomed to various "search" processes... metal detector, xray, wand, hand frisking, etc. It will really go much easier if you follow directions and do what they ask... otherwise you draw attention to yourself and that usually doesn't work out to your advantage. Personally, I've never had a cavity search, but I've seen fellow travelers who were "mouthy" to the screeners get asked to go behind the curtain. They were always a little pale when they returned... if they returned...

I don't know where you're going in SA... but I can tell you the system in most countries there lies somewhere between questionable and just plain corrupt. If you have someone meeting you there and they pay the right person the right amount you'll not even have to go through customs. If you don't then it's up for grabs whether your luggage will be searched and whatever the searcher likes will be appropriated. I happened to be unlucky enough to be flying to Buenos Aires the day some crazies blew up the Israel Embassy there back in the early/mid 90's... the experiences upon arrival were pretty surreal to say the least. Thankfully, the person meeting me "took care of things" so I was able to avoid most of the airport hassle. Most passengers that day didn't even get through customs for almost 24-hours.

My advice is don't take anything (carry-on or checked) that you value enough to be upset if it's "confiscated" (aka, stolen). Be courteous, follow directions, and dress/act like an average person. If you want to make a fashion statement... a civil rights statement... or whatever, then be prepared to spend some time not enjoying your trip as much as you would like.

just my $.02

[azjoe]

Not much more un-hygenic than packing a couple hundred people into a flying sardine can when there's alot of coughing and sneezing happening.

Or being on a puddle-jumper flight where people have brought chickens onboard and the stewardess walks down the isle spraying you (and everything else) with an insecticide... I've actually had that happen in Mexico.