:waah: wahhhhh. I have a flight coming up in two weeks to Japan. It as well as the loooong flights themselves i have an 8 hour transfer in Columbo and a 4 hour transfer in London. Iget a domestic flight from Newcastle to London then an international flight from Londond to Tokyo (via Columbo). The international flight allows knitting needles. the 1 hour domestic flight doesn’t.
Becasue of the one hour domestic flight, i will have to put my needles in my check in baggage which i wont see for another 24 hours until i arrive in Tokyo. :waah: NOT FAIR NOT FAIR NOT FAIR (i am now imagining stoming around the room wearing big boots and sulking).
now what am i going to do to stop me going crazy with boredom!!
WHY? Do you know what it is they wont allow? The needles? Any kind of needles? From past experience - I’ve just put my knitting my purse that goes through the scanner & no one says anything. I would take cheap needles that you can give to them if they say anything & put the knitting on a holder - but darn it! I’d check that out again. I thought everything was OK now to take - even at the high security - weren’t bamboo needles safe to take? I feel for you - maybe a good time to take some knitting books & magazines & figure out your next pattern?
Oh, I’m sorry about that :sad: Maybe if you [I]strategically place[/I] some small plastic or wooden needles in the middle of your carry-on items?:whistle:
If it were me, I’d take one of my cheap plastic circular needles (plastic needles as well as cable), stick it in my carry on luggage, and of course since plastic won’t show on X-ray, carry it right on. I doubt if the stewardesses would say anything about a woman quietly knitting and not pestering them every 5 minutes for some silly thing or another. Especially since the short plastic needle portions aren’t feasible weapons.
But that’s just me…and I play dumb blond pretty well (not permitted? Really? I had no clue!)
Didn’t I learn here that British Airways is picky about these things? I’d be tempted to learn to crochet on the flight, since I haven’t heard anything about no crochet hooks.
I was just going to say that Jan - I remember reading another thread here that talked about the “No Knitting Needles” rule some airlines enforce. The pencil or pen trick was mentioned there. Someone also mentioned putting their hair up with chopstick hair accessories and then just using those to knit with on the flight.
Oh I am so sorry. I have to say that since 911 I have had scissors (blunt ended) and needles confiscated. I did have one altercation in Gatwick customs coming home, and I won. Took a while, but I always check in early. I now do just as the others have said, I sink a pair of plastic rounds into my carry on. I have even put them in my bra (treat them like an underwire and they don’t x ray or beep. I just can’t be on a plane for 14 hours (9 has been my limit) without my knitting. Actually I was sitting up knitting and talking to a bored attendent. You must try and get those needles through that 1 hour domestic, or take a lot of crossword. If you have cheap needles, what’s the worst that can happen??? Just toss them and look innocent. Good luck!!! Put the plastic’s inside the skein of yarn.
Knitters must unite. I want to know…do women who knit look like a threat???
Love and Good Luck
Constance
I just thought of another idea . . . considering that you have a 4 hour delay in London, would it be possible there is a Chinese restaurant in the airport? Perhaps you can have lunch at one and take an extra set of their chopsticks to knit on the longer international flights. Kinda rough needles, but desperate times take desperate measures. Maybe you can use an emery board to soften up the wood a bit.
Frankly I don’t think the risk is worth it to try and hide needles either on yourself or your carry on, but then I’m a rule follower. I would think if you did get caught it would look worse than if you admittedly had them. I think either putting your hair up with chopsticks and/or taking along a couple pencils, some yarn and a puzzle book is the safest bet. If all else fails you can do puzzles. :teehee:
I thought the denise set was allowed anywhere…is that true?
Pencils would be ok…best to try white pencil crayons though…they wouldn’t be so likely to mark up your stuff! and all pencil crayons have that round edge…you know…the kind that roll off your desk at school!
yes, plastic needles would be good. I would opt for bamboo ones. I think, as long as they are not evil-metal-stabby-thingies then they are allowed.
I would also go for a circular needle rather than a single pointed needle (the actual needle part is about 5 inches so it is much less likely to be used as a weapon)
Don’t try to do any fancy Secret agent stuff, like hiding it in your hair… (ooh, but that could work, if you tie a bun with the cable and then stick the ends out, no one would know… but that’s beside the point) or in your bra.
just stick it in your purse (or keep your current WIP on it in your carry-on luggage). It’s not some evil doomsday device (in fact, quite the opposite) it is just a circular knitting needle.
I am sure YARN is allowed… right? Yes, just put a non-metal circular needle in your purse. Simple, they won’t stop you.
I believe that we should change the laws to conform to knitters. Since (as we all know) knitters are the nicest people in the world, they couldn’t POSSIBLY harm anyone.
Ooh, and DONT knit with pencils. THAT is awful. I have been desperate enough to knit that I tried using pencils (I was on a bus trip and someone had some yarn, but no needles) and soon decided that I would just have to wait. Pencil-knitting-needles are no fun and they take the pleasure out of knitting.
No it actually says ‘no knitting needles or crochet hooks’. I couldnt believe it! you are allowed to take on nail scisors, nail files, fountain pens (with replacemt nib) and some some items of cutlery but not knitting needles or crochet needles.
I have a metal glasses case which is just the right length for some options tips, do you think i mihgt be able to hide them in there? am i just being cheeky?
goodness i wouldnt risk hiding needles either. especially in london, they could even refuse to let you fly!! to me thats not worth it.
i’d buy some bomboo or non metal needles and speak to them face to face when you get there. usually they are pretty good at understanding that you simply wont to knit not do something awful.
i havent flown for years, before i started knitting so havent tried it yet. i will be flying this year at some point (from london) so it will be interesting to know if they do allow it.
they may allow plastics over anythign else as i know mine bend like crazy and simply snap. prehaps even take a spare needle and show them how flimsy they actually are.
alternativly a good book is always a great idea
kinda crappy though if they wont allow it, the saftey measures they are taking is great, but they dont infgorse half of the things that they should and the other half they actually do do is silly stuff like knitting needles!!
I wouldn’t speak to them if they list them and you want to try.
If they find them play dumb and let them take them.
I’d either get some plastic or bamboo and put them in your bag and don’t pull them out until you’re on the flight that allows them or find a LYS in London that you can get to during your layover.
Or if you can get a PO box or know someone in London you could mail yourself a pair and have them waiting.
I don’t think it’s so wrong to ban knitting needles, but anyone who can use one as an effective weapon can use just about anything else too.
Maybe you can use an emery board to soften up the wood a bit.