A GERMAN holidaymaker has claimed the treatment he received at Guernsey Airport has made it ‘very unlikely’ that he will ever return to the island. Reiner Michalke, the artistic director of a concert hall in Cologne, said he was unlikely to come back after incidents with Flybe and airport security staff meant he was not allowed to board his flight to Gatwick and missed a connection to his home city. The family had to travel the following day.
‘Until now I have always believed that however nonsensical some security measures seem, they are ultimately there to protect my family, myself and all other travellers, and are not actually designed as a form of harassment,’ he said.
The trip home started with a run-in with Flybe check-in staff over hand baggage. The family of four were trying to carry their own luggage, but one case was slightly too large, they carried one bag too many and when a handbag was placed in another bag, it was found to be slightly overweight. The family repacked each bag until all were OK to fly.
‘I travel very frequently but I must say I had never encountered this kind of procedure before,’ said Mr Michalke, in a letter to the Guernsey Press.
But the family’s problems really started in security, where they were threatened with arrest.
Mr Michalke said that all bags were unpacked and his eau de toilette was swabbed and, he said, claimed to be containing ‘explosive substances’.
He asked for a supervisor, but was told to hand over his boarding cards. Mr Michalke ‘wondered aloud’ if they needed to be checked for explosives, ‘which unfortunately caused the situation to escalate still further’.
He was threatened with arrest by senior security figures - some of whom he said refused to identify themselves - and the family were forced to fill in questionnaires about the purpose of their trip.
Passports were confiscated and after some time they were told that Flybe would not let them travel.
‘We simply couldn’t believe our ears,’ said Mr Michalke. ‘The Flybe supervisor informed us that Flybe had a ﾓzero tolerance policyﾔ and refused to let on board any passenger who made remarks about explosives.
‘With that we were left standing, gob-smacked, in the departures hall.’
The family decided to take the next flight to Gatwick with Aurigny, but that was already full.
They returned to La Barbarie Hotel, where they had stayed in self-catering, and flew out the next day, having checked two cases in as hold baggage.
‘What was the reason for it all? Can it have been because we are German?
‘What makes us particularly sad is the fact that now, after our third Easter visit to you, our memories of Guernsey are no longer just good ones and we are very unlikely to come back,’ said Mr Michalke.
FLYBE management was unrepentant over the decision to bar Mr Michalke and his family from flying.
Flybe general manager Ian Taylor said: ‘We have absolutely no apology to make to this passenger. There has to be a general recognition that anyone claiming to have explosives on them in an airport, for whatever reason, can expect themselves to be refused boarding to a flight.
‘I think it is irresponsible of media to highlight this kind of incident because they will only end up encouraging people to do it more often.
‘It will inconvenience other passengers and could well lead to even more security than is already in place.’
Guernsey Airport management said in a statement that it had investigated the complaint, which was regretted. The incident resulted from two different issues, neither of which was under its direct control.
In security the bags were hand-searched, it said, because the initial X-ray image was unclear and that was more likely to happen with full bags.
The security supervisor called the terminal duty manager and special branch officer when the party ‘became upset’ and their behaviour ’caused concern’.
‘It must be understood that all passengers are subject to the same security measures,’ said the statement.
‘It is understood that the frustrations caused can affect everyone at one time or another, but, in the interests of all airport users, such situations cannot be allowed to escalate.’
The duty terminal manager tried to help the family after they were excluded from the Flybe flight and management said that while the incident was regrettable, it was largely outside its control.
La Barbarie Hotel managing director Andy Coleman said: ‘I’m aware there are two sides to every story but my job was to make sure he felt as comfortable as possible on his return because it was clear to see he felt he had been treated unfairly.
‘I just tried to convince him that Guernsey was still a very good place to be and come to.’
Article posted on 19th April, 2007 - 12.00am
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