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sizzlemac03:53 UTC06 Sep 2007

So I'm going to be in london with my laptop at the end of the month. when I leave london to head back to the US (departing from Heathrow) will I be able to take my laptop on the plane or will I have to pack it in some sort of bag and check it? THis would require me to bring some sort of locked and padded bag with me so i'd love to know before hand.

thanks so much.

alanr04:07 UTC06 Sep 2007

Nothing stopping you carrying a laptop onto the plane - just that you are only allowed one bag through UK security. If you checke the Heathrow Airport website they have several pages of information on the subject

travelvirgin04:50 UTC06 Sep 2007

UK airports are the only place I've so far been to in Europe which is really strictly applying the one bag rule - even a newspaper in a plastic bag will count as a second bag, so make sure you can squeeze everything in! No problem at all to take a laptop, but you will need to take it out of your bag to go through the X-ray machine separately - so it's worth making sure it's on the top. Queues are absolutely horrendous at UK airports at the moment (probably more of a security risk in itself, but that's another question...) so make sure you allow plenty of time to get through...

big_iain14:58 UTC06 Sep 2007

As above, make sure it will fit in your 1 carry on bag. You will absolutely NOT be able to take 2 bags through security despite anything your airline will tell you.

jaflong18:51 UTC06 Sep 2007

WOW!...limited to just 1 bag,thanks for the enlightening posts!

alanr05:42 UTC07 Sep 2007

I was on another forum and someone pointed out that with a laptop you can get more than one bag worth of stuff through security

When you take the laptop out of the bag for it to be X-Rayed separately then the space left in the bag can be filled by other items, then once through security you take the extra items out & put your laptop back in

sounds nuts but folk say it works

cbtw116:57 UTC16 Sep 2007

#5 - would this work even when the security queue is being pre-screened? (Sometimes the big airports have staff who check you only have one bag / inspect your liquids before they actually let you join the security queue...)

alanr19:28 UTC16 Sep 2007

#6 God only knows - I suspect it's something that falls through the cracks in the rules. Why not just have your laptop outside the bag just in case

Heathrow Question Country forums / UK & Ireland / England
sizzlemac03:53 UTC06 Sep 2007	So I'm going to be in london with my laptop at the end of the month. when I leave london to head back to the US (departing from Heathrow) will I be able to take my laptop on the plane or will I have to pack it in some sort of bag and check it? THis would require me to bring some sort of locked and padded bag with me so i'd love to know before hand. thanks so much.
alanr04:07 UTC06 Sep 2007	Nothing stopping you carrying a laptop onto the plane - just that you are only allowed one bag through UK security. If you checke the Heathrow Airport website they have several pages of information on the subject	1
travelvirgin04:50 UTC06 Sep 2007	UK airports are the only place I've so far been to in Europe which is really strictly applying the one bag rule - even a newspaper in a plastic bag will count as a second bag, so make sure you can squeeze everything in! No problem at all to take a laptop, but you will need to take it out of your bag to go through the X-ray machine separately - so it's worth making sure it's on the top. Queues are absolutely horrendous at UK airports at the moment (probably more of a security risk in itself, but that's another question...) so make sure you allow plenty of time to get through...	2
big_iain14:58 UTC06 Sep 2007	As above, make sure it will fit in your 1 carry on bag. You will absolutely NOT be able to take 2 bags through security despite anything your airline will tell you.	3
jaflong18:51 UTC06 Sep 2007	WOW!...limited to just 1 bag,thanks for the enlightening posts!	4
alanr05:42 UTC07 Sep 2007	I was on another forum and someone pointed out that with a laptop you can get more than one bag worth of stuff through security When you take the laptop out of the bag for it to be X-Rayed separately then the space left in the bag can be filled by other items, then once through security you take the extra items out & put your laptop back in sounds nuts but folk say it works	5
cbtw116:57 UTC16 Sep 2007	#5 - would this work even when the security queue is being pre-screened? (Sometimes the big airports have staff who check you only have one bag / inspect your liquids before they actually let you join the security queue...)	6
alanr19:28 UTC16 Sep 2007	#6 God only knows - I suspect it's something that falls through the cracks in the rules. Why not just have your laptop outside the bag just in case	7

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