Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2007/09/18

[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]

Subject: [Leica] M8 battery airport adventure
From: hoppyman at bigpond.net.au (G Hopkinson)
Date: Tue Sep 18 04:22:57 2007
References: <D089DA8A57A2F1FBB0FEA7B4@Rutabook.local>

Brian, smart to not make waves, I'm sure. I'm glad you got it sorted out.
This doesn't happen with M7s you know. At least no-one was putting on rubber 
gloves for a body search ;-)
Cheers
Hoppy

-----Original Message-----
Subject: [Leica] M8 battery airport adventure

I'm traveling with an M8 kit that includes 4 Leica brand M8 batteries.
A few minutes ago I was pulled aside from the airport security check in the 
Frankfurt airport and taken downstairs in the B Wing of
Terminal 1 to a little room where they do serious explosives checks.

It took them at least 20 minutes to convince themselves that (a) the 
batteries were genuine Leica merchandise, and (b) it was not
packed with explosives. They had no interest in the camera or the lenses, 
but the batteries worried them to death. They didn't know
enough about M8s to know there was another battery inside it, so they didn't 
check that one. I think the security manager was not
aware that Leica made digital cameras and so the idea that a Leica would 
need 3 extra batteries was very 
puzzling to him. They wouldn't let me touch it while they were examining it, 
and my German isn't good enough for me to succeed in
explaining exotic details like "If you take off the baseplate you will see 
that it is not a film camera".

Right now I'm in the United Red Carpet lounge, having given up trying to get 
Deutsche Telekom to accept my US T-Mobile wireless
account and been forced to buy a 1-hour access pass to read my email.

I suspect that if I'd tried to take a picture of any of the worried security 
people I'd be in jail right now.

Brian Reid



_______________________________________________
Leica Users Group.
See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information



Replies: Reply from henningw at archiphoto.com (Henning Wulff) ([Leica] M8 battery airport adventure)
In reply to: Message from reid at mejac.palo-alto.ca.us (Brian Reid) ([Leica] M8 battery airport adventure)