Strange Experience at Swampypoon

[The_Munchmaster]

You know when you land at Swampypoon (or any airport for that matter) and as the plane is taxiing to the gate the flight staff welcome you to Thailand and make various announcements, including the warning about bringing drugs into Thailand.

 

Well two weeks ago when I arrived in LOS the announcement also included what the Thailand duty free allowances were. It must have been a new announcement as I have flown into LOS many many times and never recall hearing that before. Correct me if Iâ??m wrong.

 

Anyway I get off the plane and into the terminal, get onto the first travelator and before I reach the end I notice a security type person with a walkie talkie standing in the gap between this travelator and the next one.

 

Iâ??m carrying a Dubai Duty Free bag containing 2 bottles of whisky, cigars, magazines and nuts (for CTO), so itâ??s fairly bulky.

 

Anyway this security guy canâ??t take his eyes off my DF bag. His interest was that bloody obvious that I couldnâ??t help but take notice. He almost fell over he was stooping so low to examine it.

 

As I get onto the next travelator I glance back, he has his back to me but his walkie talkie is up at his ear, so presumably heâ??s talking to someone.

 

At the end of this travelator there is another guy dressed the same and also with walkie talkie. He is already checking out my DF bag before I get off the travelator and when I do he stops me and asks whatâ??s in the bag. â??Duty Freeâ?Â, I reply. â??Show meâ?Â, he says. So I open the bag and he inspects the contents and then tells me to carry on.

 

Again I glance back and his walkie talkie is also up at his ear, so presumably heâ??s also talking to someone.

 

This has never happened before, anywhere, and Iâ??m thinking, why is he checking my DF, and the only reason I could come up with is to warn someone outside customs that if I come through the green channel then they can bust me. Or perhaps he was going to warn me if I was over the limit? Yeah right. Anyway I was over the limit.

 

When I get to baggage claim I notice big signs on top of each baggage carousel advising what the DF allowances are and what the penalties are for going over the allowances. Maybe they were new or maybe I was now just a bit paranoid because I donâ??t ever recall seeing them before.

 

I collect my luggage and head to customs but by this time I am convinced if I go through the green channel Iâ??m busted, so I go through the red channel, something I have never done before, anywhere.

 

I declare my extra bottle of whisky but the customs officer just waves me through.

 

Would I have been busted if I hadnâ??t declared. I think so.

 

[Julian2]

Could be just a case of "frequent fliers paranoia".

We all get it occasionally but with the stories about people being busted at Swampy it's probably justified.

I've got friends flying in in May and already warned them to watch the allowances.

[WorldFun]

wise choice - going for red lane - which in your case meant free smuggling over the limit

[YimSiam]

At least you didn't face the strange new moving targets of Hong Kong, where you're now only allowed to bring in only 3 packs of cigarettes, but all the wine you can carry...

[Hugh_Hoy]

You might have been "tested". And your instincts, considering your probable anticipation of soon sampling "edibles", remained in full function. :thumbup:

 

I remember once at Don Muang I was going to buy a couple of bottles of booze at the duty free counter on arrival. (That was when comparable prices were available at Don Muang and they occasionally had "specials".) The counter gal told me that they could only sell me one bottle, as that was my customs allowance. They could've easily sold me two bottles, knowing that I could have problems.

 

HH

[Julian2]

wise choice - going for red lane - which in your case meant free smuggling over the limit

I invariably take the "something to declare" lane when entering Australia. You open your case to show them the offending item, a buffalo horn back scratcher or something, and they wave you through. Meanwhile the mile long queue across the way is still getting their dirty underwear and socks exposed to the world. That's how it normally works anyway.

[Torneyboy]

That's what i do ..buy something made from wood ..declare and i am out faster than

the greenies..

[Torneyboy]

Were you the only passenger with a duty free bag??

 

Odd behaviour by the security team..unless they were sending out a warning that you were back in town..

[dddave]

Last year, there were a lot of reports of people being stopped outside the doors of the terminal after they had gone thru customes by Revenue Police in plain clothes.

There were a lot of complaints that they were really heavy handed; carting whole families away in caged pick-ups to a Bangkok lock-up and extorting huge fines for minor violations.

There were a lot of stories in the foreign press about this and it quickly became an embarrassment.

Maybe AOT is trying to get to people carrying excessive DF before they leave the terminal and give them a chance to avoid the Revenue Police outside.

It was pretty clearly a turf war between Customs and the Revenue departments. The Revenue Police were never allowed inside the terminal.

[robaus]

There's no choice landing at Perth, Western Australia. It's such a small airport that everyone gets their baggage X-rayed. The immigration bloke, and a couple of follow-up profilers tell you which door you can take.

 

I had to show them the pics on my camera last time. Had some snaps of a couple of gfs, fortunately fully clothed. But I think they've now pinged me as a monger. Be warned: they're pretty thorough if you ever pass that way.

 

But the good news: you are allowed 2.25 litres of spirits duty free