Skeptics Stack Exchange
Skeptics Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [airport-security]

for questions about claims relating to airport security and the security procedures in place at airports worldwide.

9 questions
38
votes
5 answers

Has anyone innocent ever been arrested because of contraband that was planted in their luggage?

There is a question on travel.SE asking what to do if some culprit planted contraband in your luggage. There are some links provided to cases where this is suspected to have happened. Being able to wrap your luggage at many airports suggests that…
Andra
  • 1,013
  • 1
  • 8
  • 15
18
votes
1 answer

Were international travellers kept waiting in densely packed queues at US airports due to COVID-19 screenings?

There are several claims online that international travelers returning from Europe were kept waiting in densely packed queues at JKF and O'Hare airports, due to COVID-19 screenings, on the weekend of March 14 2020. Tweet from @kr3at JFK airport in…
Peter
  • 1,407
  • 11
  • 19
11
votes
1 answer

Does Denver International Airport display murals of conquering stormtroopers and dead children?

Some people experience unease going through the airport, and it seems best to provide something soothing and uncontroversial to look at while walking to the aircraft .... like advertising. Certainly I wouldn't expect to see: A dead child in a casket…
Paul
  • 5,380
  • 1
  • 41
  • 75
7
votes
1 answer

Fooling a commercial security door using printed scan of a fingerprint

According to wikipedia,the popular program called MythBusters were able to fool a security door with a printed scan of a fingerprint ^ "Crimes and Myth-Demeanors 1". Mythbusters. episode 16. season 4. Yes. July 12, 2006. The Discovery…
Gandalf
  • 1,763
  • 3
  • 12
  • 14
7
votes
2 answers

Can Lithium Ion batteries explode or self ignite?

Transport Canada treat lithium batteries as dangerous goods: While most lithium batteries are safe, some have overheated and caught fire. Once ignited, they can cause any nearby batteries to overheat and catch fire, as well. These fires are…
cinico
  • 241
  • 2
  • 6
5
votes
1 answer

Was it facial comparison technology that caught an impostor at Dulles airport?

According to this recent NBC story, New facial recognition tech catches first impostor at D.C. airport, a man arriving on a flight to the US presented a passport to the customs officer, but using the new facial comparison biometric system, the…
KlausN
  • 710
  • 1
  • 5
  • 13
5
votes
1 answer

Is there any evidence that laptops in airplanes might be used for terrorist attack?

For some airports in the Middle East passengers are not allowed to bring electronic devices bigger than smartphones into the cabins. According to some news pages (e.g. this article) this ban should be extended to European airports within the next…
NashVio
  • 231
  • 2
  • 7
2
votes
1 answer

How common are air marshals?

I've heard/read a couple of times that there are air marshals on every international flight. But this doesn't seem to make much sense. Maybe they're only on flights that go to important cities like London, NYC, etc. How common are air marshals…
Gabe12
  • 577
  • 2
  • 12
1
vote
1 answer

Did Haribo sugar-free gummy bears cause a man to lose bowel control in a Toronto airport in April 2013?

So, I recently saw a Youtube video (warning: potentially NSFW; contains a graphic description of gastrointestinal distress and the loss of bowel control) that reads aloud the text of an Amazon review for Haribo Sugar-Free Gummy Bears, which are…
nick012000
  • 315
  • 1
  • 3
  • 10