Refusing full-body scans will not be an option in UK airports

When it comes to airport security, it's safe to say that, for some time now, European travellers have gotten off pretty lightly compared to Americans.

Indeed, compared to arriving at a major US airport, jetting into the likes of London, Paris or Rome is a doddle, with relatively friendly officials and short(ish) queues.

However, it is now apparent that travellers opting to take both domestic and international flights out of the UK's main air travel hub will be subjected to tougher rules than those flying out of the likes of JFK or LAX.

For while American officials have, for now at least, stated that passengers on their soil will be able to opt out of being subjected to a new breed of full-body scanner and choose to be patted-down instead, the UK government is to offer no such compromise.

That is, airline passengers flying out of London Heathrow Airport who refuse to go through the innovative scanners will simply be barred from boarding, with no refund on their airline ticket allowed.

Notably, the powers that be have insisted that only a randomly-selected few will be asked to pass through the scanners, with the majority subjected to the existing rules, but such an assurance has not been anywhere near enough for opponents of the new security measure, who argue that, not only could it be embarrassing for passengers, but it
will also be a breach of their privacy rules, as protected under the Human Rights Act.

In their defence, both airport bosses and the government have pointed to the guidelines being issued to cover the use of the scanners, with these stipulating that the employee looking at the images must not see the actual passenger themselves, while, once viewed, the image must then be destroyed, rather than printed or saved.

Despite the protests, travel experts have largely played down the new measures, pointing out that the vast majority of travellers won't see any notable difference to past journeys, though their security may be improved.

In the immediate future, only a small proportion of airline passengers will be affected by the new scanners, explained Mark Tanzer, the chief executive of ABTA - The Travel Association.

He added that, while passengers need to feel confident of their own safety when they fly, they also need to be assured that their privacy and dignity are respected.

For now, it seems that the selective-use scanners manage to tick both boxes, though the unease which has greeted their arrival in the terminals of Manchester and London suggests that anything even a little harsher could lead to some looking at alternative modes of travel.