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Immigration Heathrow
I had my first experience of the new "Uk Border" style of immigration at Heathrow last night. After a long journey and 20 minutes in a holding pattern the last thing you want is 15 minutes in a line. But that said I have to admit I was impressed. There were about 6 lines f or EU passports with the new uniformed staff on each line, with a few heavies lurking in case of trouble. Every passport gets scanned and they do actually look you over to see the picture is you. Plus I liked the no nonsense approach. Yes I could have done without the hassle, but it has to be done and they seem to be doing a good job of it. -- Edward Cowling "Must Go - Politician to Heckle !!" |
Immigration Heathrow
Edward Cowling London UK wrote:
I had my first experience of the new "Uk Border" style of immigration at Heathrow last night. After a long journey and 20 minutes in a holding pattern the last thing you want is 15 minutes in a line. But that said I have to admit I was impressed. There were about 6 lines f or EU passports with the new uniformed staff on each line, with a few heavies lurking in case of trouble. Every passport gets scanned and they do actually look you over to see the picture is you. Plus I liked the no nonsense approach. Yes I could have done without the hassle, but it has to be done and they seem to be doing a good job of it. I don't understand why you need a physical passport. Why can't you just type in your own name and DOB, and that brings up a picture of you on a computer screen, or a big red X if you're not allowed in or wanted by the police. |
Immigration Heathrow
On Sep 15, 11:18 am, "John Rowland"
wrote: Edward Cowling London UK wrote: I had my first experience of the new "Uk Border" style of immigration at Heathrow last night. After a long journey and 20 minutes in a holding pattern the last thing you want is 15 minutes in a line. But that said I have to admit I was impressed. There were about 6 lines f or EU passports with the new uniformed staff on each line, with a few heavies lurking in case of trouble. Every passport gets scanned and they do actually look you over to see the picture is you. Plus I liked the no nonsense approach. Yes I could have done without the hassle, but it has to be done and they seem to be doing a good job of it. I don't understand why you need a physical passport. Why can't you just type in your own name and DOB, and that brings up a picture of you on a computer screen, or a big red X if you're not allowed in or wanted by the police. Computers and networks fail, as does electricity sometimes. |
Immigration Heathrow
In message , John Rowland
writes Edward Cowling London UK wrote: I had my first experience of the new "Uk Border" style of immigration at Heathrow last night. After a long journey and 20 minutes in a holding pattern the last thing you want is 15 minutes in a line. But that said I have to admit I was impressed. There were about 6 lines f or EU passports with the new uniformed staff on each line, with a few heavies lurking in case of trouble. Every passport gets scanned and they do actually look you over to see the picture is you. Plus I liked the no nonsense approach. Yes I could have done without the hassle, but it has to be done and they seem to be doing a good job of it. I don't understand why you need a physical passport. Why can't you just type in your own name and DOB, and that brings up a picture of you on a computer screen, or a big red X if you're not allowed in or wanted by the police. Do they have that kind of technology if you land in the developing world ? It may have it's faults, but the passport has been the best idea anyone has come up with so far. -- Edward Cowling "Must Go - Politician to Heckle !!" |
Immigration Heathrow
"Edward Cowling London UK" wrote in message ... I had my first experience of the new "Uk Border" style of immigration at Heathrow last night. After a long journey and 20 minutes in a holding pattern the last thing you want is 15 minutes in a line. But that said I have to admit I was impressed. There were about 6 lines f or EU passports with the new uniformed staff on each line, with a few heavies lurking in case of trouble. Every passport gets scanned and they do actually look you over to see the picture is you. Plus I liked the no nonsense approach. Yes I could have done without the hassle, but it has to be done and they seem to be doing a good job of it. These lines you mention - they must be queues right? Paul |
Immigration Heathrow
On Sat, 15 Sep 2007 10:53:19 +0100, Edward Cowling London UK
wrote in : I had my first experience of the new "Uk Border" style of immigration at Heathrow last night. After a long journey and 20 minutes in a holding pattern the last thing you want is 15 minutes in a line. But that said I have to admit I was impressed. There were about 6 lines f or EU passports with the new uniformed staff on each line, with a few heavies lurking in case of trouble. Every passport gets scanned and they do actually look you over to see the picture is you. Plus I liked the no nonsense approach. Now try to do it at T3 midday Saturday as a non-EU/non-Swiss UK resident. Like I did last Saturday. It took 45 minutes because there's no Residents' line. Yes I could have done without the hassle, but it has to be done and they seem to be doing a good job of it. They could do with better organising and making the signs up-to-date. Some signs are covered up, making others ambiguous, or they are covered over with hand-written signs on paper. Confusion reigned. -- Ivan Reid, School of Engineering & Design, _____________ CMS Collaboration, Brunel University. ] Room 40-1-B12, CERN KotPT -- "for stupidity above and beyond the call of duty". |
Immigration Heathrow
In message , Paul Scott
writes "Edward Cowling London UK" wrote in message ... I had my first experience of the new "Uk Border" style of immigration at Heathrow last night. After a long journey and 20 minutes in a holding pattern the last thing you want is 15 minutes in a line. But that said I have to admit I was impressed. There were about 6 lines f or EU passports with the new uniformed staff on each line, with a few heavies lurking in case of trouble. Every passport gets scanned and they do actually look you over to see the picture is you. Plus I liked the no nonsense approach. Yes I could have done without the hassle, but it has to be done and they seem to be doing a good job of it. These lines you mention - they must be queues right? Sorry you're quite right, I was being slipping into Ameriglish :-) Of course it was queues old chap. Of course the damn colonials have separate non EU queues and even that is too good for them, what ! Ahh for the days of the Empire :-) -- Edward Cowling "Must Go - Politician to Heckle !!" |
Immigration Heathrow
On Sat, 15 Sep 2007 10:53:19 +0100, Edward Cowling London UK
wrote: I had my first experience of the new "Uk Border" style of immigration at Heathrow last night. I had no idea it was changing. It was already the worst form of immigration "service" I've encountered anywhere in the world. Oh well, one further reason not to leave the country. After a long journey and 20 minutes in a holding pattern the last thing you want is 15 minutes in a line. But that said I have to admit I was impressed. There were about 6 lines f or EU passports with the new uniformed staff on each line, with a few heavies lurking in case of trouble. Nothing new there then. BAA, air traffic control and immigration all awful as usual. Every passport gets scanned and they do actually look you over to see the picture is you. Plus I liked the no nonsense approach. So they're making it *even* worse and time consuming for legitimate entrants to the country. The UK Immigration Service, IMO, is notable in managing to create an experience so awful that it makes me as a UK citizen feel unwelcome in my own country. Yes I could have done without the hassle, but it has to be done and they seem to be doing a good job of it. Everyone who has the right to be in the UK for whatever legitimate reason is entitled to a no hassle service. It's never been provided before and it looks like it isn't being done now. I'm not going to open an immigration debate with you as that's off topic. -- Paul C Admits to working for London Underground! |
Immigration Heathrow
"Paul Corfield" wrote in message ... On Sat, 15 Sep 2007 10:53:19 +0100, Edward Cowling London UK wrote: I had my first experience of the new "Uk Border" style of immigration at Heathrow last night. I had no idea it was changing. It was already the worst form of immigration "service" I've encountered anywhere in the world. Oh well, one further reason not to leave the country. You've never flown to the US then! It's the pits, makes the UK controls look trivial. tim |
Immigration Heathrow
On Sat, 15 Sep 2007 12:08:46 +0100, "tim....."
wrote: "Paul Corfield" wrote in message .. . On Sat, 15 Sep 2007 10:53:19 +0100, Edward Cowling London UK wrote: I had my first experience of the new "Uk Border" style of immigration at Heathrow last night. I had no idea it was changing. It was already the worst form of immigration "service" I've encountered anywhere in the world. Oh well, one further reason not to leave the country. You've never flown to the US then! It's the pits, makes the UK controls look trivial. Yes I have several times. Admittedly not with the current regulations introduced by Bush. In fact I will never travel to the States while they insist on treating me as a criminal upon arrival. The US made fatal errors that Al Qaeda exploited but that is not justification for the quite ludicrous measures that are now in place. -- Paul C Admits to working for London Underground! |
Immigration Heathrow
In message , tim.....
writes "Paul Corfield" wrote in message .. . On Sat, 15 Sep 2007 10:53:19 +0100, Edward Cowling London UK wrote: I had my first experience of the new "Uk Border" style of immigration at Heathrow last night. I had no idea it was changing. It was already the worst form of immigration "service" I've encountered anywhere in the world. Oh well, one further reason not to leave the country. You've never flown to the US then! It's the pits, makes the UK controls look trivial. I remember arriving in Philadelphia on a Sunday and telling the guy in immigration I was coming over for business meeting on the Monday in Wilmington, Delaware. "Who's worth seeing in Wilmington ?" he asked. Without any trace of a smile or humour. Talk about promoting trade & industry :-) USA immigration officers usually look and sound like ex night club bouncers who were sacked for brutality ! -- Edward Cowling "Must Go - Politician to Heckle !!" |
Immigration Heathrow
On 15 Sep, 10:53, Edward Cowling London UK
wrote: I had my first experience of the new "Uk Border" style of immigration at Heathrow last night. After a long journey and 20 minutes in a holding pattern the last thing you want is 15 minutes in a line. But that said I have to admit I was impressed. There were about 6 lines f or EU passports with the new uniformed staff on each line, with a few heavies lurking in case of trouble. Every passport gets scanned and they do actually look you over to see the picture is you. Plus I liked the no nonsense approach. Yes I could have done without the hassle, but it has to be done and they seem to be doing a good job of it. -- Edward Cowling "Must Go - Politician to Heckle !!" I haven't really got my head around the changes but I don't think things have changed radically overnight, apart from the fact that Immigration Officers are now uniformed (if that is to be considered a radical change). The Wikipedia article on the UK Immigration Service [1] states that there are/were trials of the new uniform at Heathrow Airport with a full rollout to all staff in September (i.e. now). In the UKIS was is part of the Border and Immigration Agency (BIA), which is what the Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND) of the Home Office has become. BIA website: http://bia.homeoffice.gov.uk/ It would appear that this is currently a 'shadow' agency as the enacting legislation, the "UK Borders Bill", is still passing through Parliament. More info on this Bill is here on the BIA website: http://www.bia.homeoffice.gov.uk/aboutus/ourplans/ukbordersbill Travelling earlier in the summer back into Stansted the Immigration Officers weren't uniformed but were scanning passports. The BIA claims that "from 2009 the majority of people will be counted in and out of the UK"... http://www.ind.homeoffice.gov.uk/aboutus/ourplans/ securingtheukborder ....which sounds similar to what authorities in the US hope to do. I'm not so sure they'll be massively successful in this endeavour, even leaving aside the open border in Ireland. Are they scanning passports of those coming off the ferries at all, as they weren't last summer? How about Eurostar passengers, as they weren't doing that at Gare du Nord when I went through there last winter? I also wonder whether the "heavies" really were UKIS staff - perhaps they were airport security staff. I guess they might have been somewhat mean looking UKIS staff, but maybe they were just the more senior supervisors. Bear in mind that the UKIS staff are civil servants, not bouncers! (Reminds me of the time the water company sent a huge mean looking guy round to a place I lived as the water bill hadn't been paid - courtesy of a misunderstanding with our landlord. He was obviously intended to be somewhat intimidating, but he wasn't a bailiff and was really there just for show - something I worked out immediately, which he realised as well, so the whole effect fell a bit flat on its face! But I digress massively!) I'd always expect there to be some coppers close by if things did get ugly - but trouble of that kind at Immigration is really not something you ever hear about. ---------- [1] Wikipedia - UK Immigration Service http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UK_Immigration_Service |
Immigration Heathrow
"Edward Cowling London UK" wrote in message ... In message , tim..... writes "Paul Corfield" wrote in message . .. On Sat, 15 Sep 2007 10:53:19 +0100, Edward Cowling London UK wrote: I had my first experience of the new "Uk Border" style of immigration at Heathrow last night. I had no idea it was changing. It was already the worst form of immigration "service" I've encountered anywhere in the world. Oh well, one further reason not to leave the country. You've never flown to the US then! It's the pits, makes the UK controls look trivial. I remember arriving in Philadelphia on a Sunday and telling the guy in immigration I was coming over for business meeting on the Monday in Wilmington, Delaware. "Who's worth seeing in Wilmington ?" he asked. Without any trace of a smile or humour. Talk about promoting trade & industry :-) USA immigration officers usually look and sound like ex night club bouncers who were sacked for brutality ! Yep, that's it. Whatever the problems with the organisation (and the US has that too) at least the Brits attitude is pleasant and they give the impression that they are making an objective decision as to whether you are a bad'n or not. The American's attitude is rude and if you are foreign they have already decided (that you are). tim |
Immigration Heathrow
"Mizter T" wrote in message ps.com... On 15 Sep, 10:53, Edward Cowling London UK wrote: I had my first experience of the new "Uk Border" style of immigration at Heathrow last night. After a long journey and 20 minutes in a holding pattern the last thing you want is 15 minutes in a line. But that said I have to admit I was impressed. There were about 6 lines f or EU passports with the new uniformed staff on each line, with a few heavies lurking in case of trouble. Every passport gets scanned and they do actually look you over to see the picture is you. Plus I liked the no nonsense approach. Yes I could have done without the hassle, but it has to be done and they seem to be doing a good job of it. -- Edward Cowling "Must Go - Politician to Heckle !!" I haven't really got my head around the changes but I don't think things have changed radically overnight, Apparently, the difference is that they are now no longer allowed to decide not to check every person when the queues are long. They now have to check everybody and the queue length is someone else's problem to (not) sort out. tim |
Immigration Heathrow
On Sat, 15 Sep 2007 12:08:46 +0100, "tim....."
wrote: You've never flown to the US then! It's the pits, makes the UK controls look trivial. I will admit I always liked the non-uniformed informality of the UK approach. They could quite easily have tightened it up without losing that typically British friendliness. Neil -- Neil Williams Put my first name before the at to reply. |
Immigration Heathrow
On Sat, 15 Sep 2007, Edward Cowling London UK wrote:
Plus I liked the no nonsense approach. What do you mean? I don't remember there being much nonsense in the approach the last few times i've been through passport control. tom -- non, scarecrow, forensics, rituals, bacteria, scientific instruments, .. |
Immigration Heathrow
In message , Neil Williams
writes On Sat, 15 Sep 2007 12:08:46 +0100, "tim....." wrote: You've never flown to the US then! It's the pits, makes the UK controls look trivial. I will admit I always liked the non-uniformed informality of the UK approach. They could quite easily have tightened it up without losing that typically British friendliness. Yeah, give them all a Walther PPK and allow them to take the odd pot shot at anyone who looked a bit Brazilian :-) -- Edward Cowling "Must Go - Politician to Heckle !!" |
Immigration Heathrow
In message , Tom
Anderson writes On Sat, 15 Sep 2007, Edward Cowling London UK wrote: Plus I liked the no nonsense approach. What do you mean? I don't remember there being much nonsense in the approach the last few times i've been through passport control. You didn't get the guy doing the mime impression then ? I knew they'd stop that :-) -- Edward Cowling "Must Go - Politician to Heckle !!" |
Immigration Heathrow
Mizter T wrote:
...which sounds similar to what authorities in the US hope to do. I'm not so sure they'll be massively successful in this endeavour, even leaving aside the open border in Ireland. Are they scanning passports of those coming off the ferries at all, as they weren't last summer? How about Eurostar passengers, as they weren't doing that at Gare du Nord when I went through there last winter? Having travelled with Eurostar last week, UK Immigration (at Brussels) were extremely variable. The female Officer who I saw was really miserable for some reason, and didn't utter a word. Her male colleague, sitting next to her in the booth, on the other hand was quite jovial and chatty with those he saw. Cheers, Barry |
Immigration Heathrow
In article ,
Barry Salter wrote: Mizter T wrote: ...which sounds similar to what authorities in the US hope to do. I'm not so sure they'll be massively successful in this endeavour, even leaving aside the open border in Ireland. Are they scanning passports of those coming off the ferries at all, as they weren't last summer? How about Eurostar passengers, as they weren't doing that at Gare du Nord when I went through there last winter? Having travelled with Eurostar last week, UK Immigration (at Brussels) were extremely variable. The female Officer who I saw was really miserable for some reason, and didn't utter a word. Her male colleague, sitting next to her in the booth, on the other hand was quite jovial and chatty with those he saw. Practising their good cop bad cop routine perhaps ... Nick -- Serendipity: http://www.leverton.org/blosxom (last update 9th Sep 2007) "The Internet, an ersatz counterfeit of real life" -- Janet Street-Porter, BBC2, 19th March 1996 |
Immigration Heathrow
On 15 Sep, 14:46, (Neil Williams)
wrote: On Sat, 15 Sep 2007 12:08:46 +0100, "tim....." wrote: You've never flown to the US then! It's the pits, makes the UK controls look trivial. I will admit I always liked the non-uniformed informality of the UK approach. They could quite easily have tightened it up without losing that typically British friendliness. Neil Yes, I tend to agree. Of course the whole issue of uniforms is one that is surrounded by many theories, and is a favourite topic of study by psychologists and the like. Maybe the uniform does suggest to people (not least the officers themselves) that they are taking things seriously/to be taken seriously. Of course the cynic would suggest this change of image is really for the benefit of the law abiding GBP* as opposed to those wishing to break the rules - however I'm more of a sceptic than a cynic so I wouldn't necessarily be in complete agreement with such a simplistic line of argument, though I think it likely such considerations were at least a factor (even subliminally) in the change of policy. Of course it isn't possibly to entirely disentangle considerations of how the image of the newly-uniformed Immigration officers will come across to the GBP as discrete from how it will be seen by the wider world. ---------- * GBP - the "Great British Public". |
Immigration Heathrow
On 15 Sep, 16:33, Barry Salter wrote:
Mizter T wrote: ...which sounds similar to what authorities in the US hope to do. I'm not so sure they'll be massively successful in this endeavour, even leaving aside the open border in Ireland. Are they scanning passports of those coming off the ferries at all, as they weren't last summer? How about Eurostar passengers, as they weren't doing that at Gare du Nord when I went through there last winter? Having travelled with Eurostar last week, UK Immigration (at Brussels) were extremely variable. The female Officer who I saw was really miserable for some reason, and didn't utter a word. Her male colleague, sitting next to her in the booth, on the other hand was quite jovial and chatty with those he saw. But did they scan in your passport at all? |
Immigration Heathrow
The female Officer who I saw was really miserable for some reason, and
didn't utter a word. Her male colleague, sitting next to her in the booth, on the other hand was quite jovial and chatty with those he saw. Perhaps they are married and she's got the hump with him. |
Immigration Heathrow
"Edward Cowling London UK" wrote in message
... I had my first experience of the new "Uk Border" style of immigration at Heathrow last night. After a long journey and 20 minutes in a holding pattern the last thing you want is 15 minutes in a line. But that said I have to admit I was impressed. There were about 6 lines f or EU passports with the new uniformed staff on each line, with a few heavies lurking in case of trouble. Every passport gets scanned and they do actually look you over to see the picture is you. Plus I liked the no nonsense approach. Took 15 minutes through LGW last Tuesday at 11:15pm, which I thought was disgraceful. What are they doing that is so "new" and slow? I'm sure the new uniforms don't make them work slower, and once I got to the front of the queue, they simply scanned my passport and had a quick gander, exactly the same as every other time through immigration in the last couple years. So why the wait? Yes I could have done without the hassle, but it has to be done and they seem to be doing a good job of it. I could. At that time of night, I just want to get home (mind you, my taxi was then 20 minutes late, so I was pretty ****ed off with them, too). |
Immigration Heathrow
dB wrote:
The female Officer who I saw was really miserable for some reason, and didn't utter a word. Her male colleague, sitting next to her in the booth, on the other hand was quite jovial and chatty with those he saw. Perhaps they are married and she's got the hump with him. In bed they take it in turns to... no, I can't say that. |
Immigration Heathrow
In message , Graculus
writes What are they doing that is so "new" and slow? I'm sure the new uniforms don't make them work slower, and once I got to the front of the queue, they simply scanned my passport and had a quick gander, exactly the same as every other time through immigration in the last couple years. So why the wait? You can't complain, I had to wait with a bunch of teenage "Goths" just arrived from New York :-) Now that really was hell. Mind you I can remember when customs could often mean half an hour with a stroppy official going through your case. As I usually travel alone I always seemed to get stopped. These days you never see anyone in customs. Is a no hassle EU walk through a good idea ? I'm sure the drug barons think it's a wonderful idea. -- Edward Cowling "Must Go - Politician to Heckle !!" |
Immigration Heathrow
"tim.." wrote in message
Whatever the problems with the organisation (and the US has that too) at least the Brits attitude is pleasant and they give the impression that they are making an objective decision as to whether you are a bad'n or not. The American's attitude is rude and if you are foreign they have already decided (that you are). Actually, I find that the US immigration people have got friendlier since the new thumbprint/mugshot rules came in. Basically, they can trust the computers to spot the wrong 'uns, and can afford to be less suspicious than before. I've been travelling to the US at least once a year for almost 30 years now, I don't think it's any more tedious now than in the past. Of course, you do need to remmeber to provide all sorts of extra info before leaving, including where you're staying (how can they check?). If you can get off the plane early and don't arrive just after a far eastern 747 where hardly anyone speaks English, you won't usually have a long wait at immigration (I once arrived in SFO just after a Cathay flight packed with masked pax during the SARs scare). On my last flight to the US a couple of months ago, I was the first off the plane (something you don't often manage on a packed 747) and whizzed through SFO immigration and customs. I'm off to Canada on Tuesday, and in my experience they are particularly friendly. My next US trips isn't till October, so fingers crossed that they both stay friendly and efficient. Unfortunately, my next US trips is to Orlando, and that's an airport that has really been messed up by the new security rules (you have to queue security on the way *in*, because they mix incoming and outgoing pax on the satellite shuttles). |
Immigration Heathrow
Edward Cowling London UK wrote:
Mind you I can remember when customs could often mean half an hour with a stroppy official going through your case. As I usually travel alone I always seemed to get stopped. These days you never see anyone in customs. As it happens, on my return journey from Brussels we had a "welcoming committee" of about half a dozen Customs Officers at Waterloo (no prizes for guessing that our Eurostar had a connection out of a Thalys and an IC from Amsterdam), pulling a few folks out of the crowd. (I wasn't one of them). Cheers, Barry |
Immigration Heathrow
Mizter T wrote:
On 15 Sep, 16:33, Barry Salter wrote: Having travelled with Eurostar last week, UK Immigration (at Brussels) were extremely variable. The female Officer who I saw was really miserable for some reason, and didn't utter a word. Her male colleague, sitting next to her in the booth, on the other hand was quite jovial and chatty with those he saw. But did they scan in your passport at all? I have to admit that I wasn't paying particular attention. The officer in question did spend quite some time with it, however, so I expect so. Cheers, Barry |
Immigration Heathrow
"Edward Cowling London UK" wrote in message
... In message , Graculus writes What are they doing that is so "new" and slow? I'm sure the new uniforms don't make them work slower, and once I got to the front of the queue, they simply scanned my passport and had a quick gander, exactly the same as every other time through immigration in the last couple years. So why the wait? You can't complain, I had to wait with a bunch of teenage "Goths" just arrived from New York :-) Now that really was hell. Mind you I can remember when customs could often mean half an hour with a stroppy official going through your case. As I usually travel alone I always seemed to get stopped. These days you never see anyone in customs. Is a no hassle EU walk through a good idea ? I'm sure the drug barons think it's a wonderful idea. Got sniffed by a drugs dog right as I was having my passport swiped anyway. |
Immigration Heathrow
On Sat, 15 Sep 2007 09:41:26 -0700, Mizter T
wrote: Of course the whole issue of uniforms is one that is surrounded by many theories, and is a favourite topic of study by psychologists and the like. Maybe the uniform does suggest to people (not least the officers themselves) that they are taking things seriously/to be taken seriously. Of course the cynic would suggest this change of image is really for the benefit of the law abiding GBP* as opposed to those wishing to break the rules This wouldn't surprise me, nor would the theory that security and immigration queues are allowed to get bigger because that shows that "Something Is Being Done" (tm), while employing more staff and improving procedures doesn't. Neil -- Neil Williams Put my first name before the at to reply. |
Immigration Heathrow
On Sat, 15 Sep 2007, Recliner wrote:
I'm off to Canada on Tuesday, and in my experience they are particularly friendly. Immigration at Calgary was by far the most unfriendly i've ever experienced. They were probably just having a bad day! tom -- Sapere aude! |
Immigration Heathrow
"Tom Anderson" wrote in message h.li... On Sat, 15 Sep 2007, Recliner wrote: I'm off to Canada on Tuesday, and in my experience they are particularly friendly. Immigration at Calgary was by far the most unfriendly i've ever experienced. They were probably just having a bad day! The one at Montreal was equally unfriendly. Having ticked the "holiday" box on the form and told him that I was on a "fly-drive" he actually asked "why would you want to holiday here". Are they trying to turn tourists away. tim |
Immigration Heathrow
"tim.." wrote in message
"Tom Anderson" wrote in message h.li... On Sat, 15 Sep 2007, Recliner wrote: I'm off to Canada on Tuesday, and in my experience they are particularly friendly. Immigration at Calgary was by far the most unfriendly i've ever experienced. They were probably just having a bad day! The one at Montreal was equally unfriendly. Having ticked the "holiday" box on the form and told him that I was on a "fly-drive" he actually asked "why would you want to holiday here". Are they trying to turn tourists away. I was in Montreal on business a few months ago and the (female) immigration officer couldn't have been nicer. And that was despite not being a French speaker. |
Immigration Heathrow
On Sat, 15 Sep 2007 12:39:04 +0100, Edward Cowling London UK
wrote: In message , tim..... writes "Paul Corfield" wrote in message . .. On Sat, 15 Sep 2007 10:53:19 +0100, Edward Cowling London UK wrote: I had my first experience of the new "Uk Border" style of immigration at Heathrow last night. I had no idea it was changing. It was already the worst form of immigration "service" I've encountered anywhere in the world. Oh well, one further reason not to leave the country. You've never flown to the US then! It's the pits, makes the UK controls look trivial. I remember arriving in Philadelphia on a Sunday and telling the guy in immigration I was coming over for business meeting on the Monday in Wilmington, Delaware. "Who's worth seeing in Wilmington ?" he asked. Without any trace of a smile or humour. Talk about promoting trade & industry :-) USA immigration officers usually look and sound like ex night club bouncers who were sacked for brutality ! It doesn't just happen there. Before I was naturalised here, I had indefinite leave to remain. I came into Heathrow one evening and presented my US passport to an immigration officer who was Scottish. He didn't see the indefinite leave to remain stamp immediately and asked me, "How long will you be staying here?" I said, "I live here!" He immediately replied, "For your sins?" I know this is off-topic. I'll get my coat. -- Chris Hansen | chrishansenhome at btinternet dot com |
What uniforms?
"Edward Cowling London UK" wrote in
message I had my first experience of the new "Uk Border" style of immigration at Heathrow last night. After a long journey and 20 minutes in a holding pattern the last thing you want is 15 minutes in a line. But that said I have to admit I was impressed. There were about 6 lines f or EU passports with the new uniformed staff on each line, with a few heavies lurking in case of trouble. Every passport gets scanned and they do actually look you over to see the picture is you. Plus I liked the no nonsense approach. Yes I could have done without the hassle, but it has to be done and they seem to be doing a good job of it. I arrived back at LHR T3 early this morning and didn't see any sign of the new immigration uniforms. All was as it has been for the last few months -- friendly, efficient immigration staff in civvies, with no obvious heavies in evidence and no long delays. It was the same when I left a few days ago -- exit passport inspection, but no uniforms in sight. |
What uniforms?
In message , Recliner
writes "Edward Cowling London UK" wrote in message I had my first experience of the new "Uk Border" style of immigration at Heathrow last night. After a long journey and 20 minutes in a holding pattern the last thing you want is 15 minutes in a line. But that said I have to admit I was impressed. There were about 6 lines f or EU passports with the new uniformed staff on each line, with a few heavies lurking in case of trouble. Every passport gets scanned and they do actually look you over to see the picture is you. Plus I liked the no nonsense approach. Yes I could have done without the hassle, but it has to be done and they seem to be doing a good job of it. I arrived back at LHR T3 early this morning and didn't see any sign of the new immigration uniforms. All was as it has been for the last few months -- friendly, efficient immigration staff in civvies, with no obvious heavies in evidence and no long delays. It was the same when I left a few days ago -- exit passport inspection, but no uniforms in sight. I unfortunately landed at Terminal 1 last Friday. It is the worst terminal and does badly need pulling down and rebuilding. Segregation of incoming and outgoing passengers was often just a piece of tape across two cones. And the immigration hall had close to 500 or so very weary and ticked off passengers. But all the staff were in the new uniforms. -- Edward Cowling "If it screams it's not food yet !!" |
Immigration Heathrow
On Sat, 22 Sep 2007 14:13:07 +0100, Richard
wrote: Has anybody here registered with IRIS? This might be the solution. I haven't registered, but I think I will next time I pass through. A pity that it has not yet been extended to Eurostar arrivals. A bunch of us registered to reduce the pain of LHR arrivals. It's a relatively pleasant experience in LHR T4 to register: the staff were pleasant and efficient. However the one sole machine in T4 arrivals is not well. According to the passport bod it's been out of action for 1 week now. You get several problems with use of Iris. Firstly, there's only one per arrivals area. Sometimes the EU queue is faster, especially when someone in front is doing their best make a balls of reading their eyeballs. Secondly, the system is not really intuitive: you wait for the glass panels to slide shut, red X becomes green arrow, step up, glass panels open and admit one. Some people step too close to the panel and it stays shut in a sulk until a space is left. Unlike Schiphol's much older and costly (EUR75?) system which tips failures in front of the EU q,, a 'reject' has to either walk all the way back to a proper EU queue or scale barriers. You're meant to slip to the shorter Q: EU or rest of world but the rejects I've seen tend to loiter and block - the system has been kind to me for 4 or so weeks and it's fair to say that it works on cop & clue as well as the iris. Peeps lacking cop tend to drastically slow down the process. Registering needs a proof of ID and residency. 10 or so mins on a good day but they open well after the red eyes (!) have departed. -- Old anti-spam address cmylod at despammed dot com appears broke So back to cmylod at bigfoot dot com |
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