This is exactly right. I flew to Kauai with a fully loaded Pelican 1620 case and it was locked on departure. On arrival the lock was gone and there was a TSA form inside notifying me that they'd gone through it per regulations but nothing was missing. I was told that locked bags are often targeted for physical searches. The one thing that bugged me was that the pressure valve on the case used to equalize the pressure to make it easier to open on arrival was loosened and the inside of the bag was a bit cold from being exposed to the atmosphere inside the cargo hold at 35,000 feet. So, there was a slight amount of condensation on one lens case but nothing more. I doubt if the TSA guys knew what the valve was for and so they didn't screw it back it in all the way.
On the flight home I had it prescreened by a TSA agent. I didn't bother to lock it this time. Everything arrived with me in San Francisco. -Brendan --- Larry Levy <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > In the US, it's more complicated. TSA has the right > to examine your checked > bags even if they are locked. (I know that they > actually do thisk because > frequently my bag winds up with a TSA inspected > paper inside.) If they > choose to look inside a locked bag, they simply clip > the lock. The way > around this is to use a combination lock designed > specifically for this > purpose. It can also be opened by a "TSA key." > > This means that the potential thief has to simply > get a copy of the TSA key > to provide himself with free access to your bag's > contents. > > Larry in Dallas > > > -- > PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List > PDML@pdml.net > http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net > __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
