At 04:05 AM 8/6/2008, you wrote:
> >> I'm sure they see all sorts of weird stuff every day, just be as
> >> up-front as you can about things, and nothing's more powerful than the
> >> human smile.
> >
> >Absolutely correct, try smiling at someone in France and see what
> >happens!
>
>You mean bad things or good things ??
>
>I do remember carrying a small scientific telescope in hand luggage when
>boarding a flight at Orly Airport in Paris, which had part of the mount
>still attached. Going through the x-ray it did look just like a gun.
>Produced an interesting few minutes while the security satisfied themselves
>as to just what it was. Smiles all round at the end though.

A couple of times I had stuff that looked extremely suspicious (other than
just some circuitry). Once a gleaming stainless steel cylindrical device
about a foot long, connected to a substantial spool of wire and an 
electronic box.

Another time a bundle of cylinders that were opaque to X-rays (nuclear
parts).

In both cases I called ahead and left extra time and things went well
(they also did some extra checks which I'll not mention in public).

Funny, when I phoned they didn't give me any advice about smiling, but did
advise me to explain first and not to do anything sudden on the spot. ;-)

Best regards,

Spehro Pefhany --"it's the network..."            "The Journey is the reward"
speff@interlog.com             Info for manufacturers: http://www.trexon.com
Embedded software/hardware/analog  Info for designers:  http://www.speff.com



-- 
http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive
View/change your membership options at
http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist