Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2002/03/08
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Having followed this topic in rec.photo.equipment.35mm for a long time, and having downloaded a copy of the FAA regulation regarding cameras and film from the web, it is clear that the FAA regulations state unequivocally that you have the right, for domestic flights, to demand hand inspection of film and loaded cameras. It is also clear that a great many security folk violate this regulation. The advice that has been given in the newsgroup a) to demand that the issue be referred to the FAA agent at the airport, and b) to request the aid of the airline's customer service people. It is even suggested that one first take the matter up with customer service before approaching the security point. All of this assumes that you are sufficiently early that starting a hassle won't make you miss the flight. What I, personally recommend, is that, after the fact, you lodge a complaint with the FAA about this refusal, naming the airport, airline, flight number and date. One thing has been stated many times: the operators cannot crank up the xray intensity. And, when they stop the treadmill to take a long look at a piece of baggage, they are not exposing it to a constant xray beam; they are simply freezing a previous image on the display and studying it. While the consensus has been that one passage through the xray is probably ok even for 1600 film, remember that exposure is cumulative, so that if you take the same film through a security station four times, your 800 film would suffer the same as 3200 film going through once. Herb - -- Herbert Kanner kanner@acm.org 650-326-8204 Do not meddle in the affairs of cats, for they are subtle and will pee on your computer! - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html